Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) must have become very fearful when we said that it was going to become one of the next penny stocks if it did not have a serious turn for the better. The troubled processor and chip giant is leaderless for all practical purposes and almost every effort either has only limited success or seems to be a failure.

Now we have a Reuters disclosure that AMD has hired J.P. Morgan to explore strategic alternatives. This is code for “to seek buyers” for the company, although a sale of the company is not the only possibility here. AMD could have patent licensing, unit or division sales and restructurings (like that hasn’t been tried before) and on.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED (SEE BELOW).

AMD shares are up 6% at $2.12 on the day. it is important to remember that the stock hit $1.97 today and the 52-week low is only $1.96.

Our take is that AMD needs to somehow do better in its efforts with ARM Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: ARMH) for server initiatives. This is where Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) thrives and AMD just has not been able to make any inroads on doing any better than 20% of market share on a good day.

Intel has already paid AMD for an antitrust settlement and Intel still needs AMD to succeed so that it is not accused all over agin of becoming a monopoly.

UPDATE AT 4:50 P.M. EST: Both the WSJ and Bloomberg have reported that AMD is not pursuing the sale of the company nor of strategic assets. You just have to love it when you cannot even trust news agencies or when they get too aggressive on rumors.

JON C. OGG

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