The slow, but steady gains in personal computer (PC) sales have helped some old-school names in the chip industry make a nice comeback over the past year. The problem is PC sales have historically been like car sales, they are cyclical and tend to rise and fall with the economy and overall demand. The real driving force in the industry going forward is security, storage, cloud technology and virtualization.

A new research report from the chip analysts at UBS points out that chip sales have historically tracked S&P profit trends. That is a key factor as margins are above 2010 levels for the major corporations, yet chip sales versus earnings continued to decline since then. The trend has reversed, and with solid growth from PC sales, combined with new technology needs and the upcoming iPhone 6 release, things are very bright for the top chip companies.

UBS has rated six chip stocks as a Buy. Aggressive growth investors looking to add a technology component to their portfolios may want to consider adding one or more of these top companies.

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) has a Buy rating at UBS and has turned the corner after years of sideways and disappointing progress for investors. A new commitment to smartphone and mobile applications, combined with the resurgence of PC growth this year, has made Intel one of the best large cap value stocks to buy. Intel trades at 15 times forward earnings, more than in recent years, but still a reasonable multiple for investors looking for growth.

Intel shareholders are paid a solid 2.6% dividend. UBS has a $37.50 price target, while the consensus target is posted at $33.75. Intel closed Wednesday at $34.57 a share.

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Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) posted very solid earnings for the second quarter, and the stock was promptly down, though it has rallied back strong. The company, which is a leader in DRAM chip sales and is one of the top UBS memory picks, has seen a nice streak of beating earnings estimates, especially when looking at the previous two reports. Micron beat estimates by at least 35% in both cases, suggesting it has a nice short-term history of crushing expectations. With a looming memory shortage, the stock could have serious upside potential.

The UBS price target for Micron is $35, and the consensus target for the stock is $38.44. Micron shares closed Wednesday at $31.68.

NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA) remains Silicon Valley’s top graphics chip company, and many on Wall Street see the stock having the ability to soar over the next year. The company has been able to use its ability to leverage past investments, with a more controlled spending structure ahead on unified, which enables strong cash flow that is allowing a focus on capital return, which is currently estimated to be $1 billion next year. Despite a strong move this year, the UBS team thinks the best could still be ahead.

NVIDIA investors receive a 1.9% dividend. The UBS price target is $20 and may go higher at some point. The consensus target is also $20. The stock closed Wednesday at $19.68.

Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) was added to the UBS Dividend Ruler list this summer, and it may be on the verge of making its gigantic world even bigger, with chips for every device and application. The stock is rated Buy and is also on the firm’s high conviction list. Lenovo, which is one of the fastest growing technology companies, will mainly rely on Qualcomm chips for handsets shipped outside China due to intellectual property reasons. Microsoft plans to use Qualcomm chips in its new, smaller version of the Surface tablet.

Investors in Qualcomm are paid a 2.1% dividend. The UBS price target is posted at $86. The consensus target for the stock is $84.85. Shares ended Wednesday at $74.89.

READ ALSO: 4 Chip Stocks That Do Not PC Growth to Rise

SanDisk Corp. (NASDAQ: SNDK) is another top stock that is rated as Buy at UBS. SanDisk’s quality, state-of-the-art solutions are at the heart of many of the world’s largest data centers, and they are embedded in advanced smart phones, tablets and PCs. The company is considered one of the top memory stocks for investors to own now.

SanDisk investors are paid a 1.3% dividend. The UBS price target is $120, and the consensus target is at $112.83. The stock closed Wednesday at $95.73 a share.

Avago Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: AVGO) not only gets a huge chunk of its business from Apple, but it is a big provider in the cloud/hyperscale data center and networking segment. The company supplies Cisco Systems with application-specific integrated circuits for a variety of high-end gear. It also indirectly sells into Scientific Atlanta by supplying integrated circuits for disk drives that end up in DVRs.

Investors are paid a 1.6% dividend. The UBS price target for this top stock is $87, and the consensus price target is $91.05. Avago closed Wednesday at $85.39.

The UBS team really is not going after any long shots here. The firm is focused on the top stocks in the chip arena, and their advice to investors makes good sense. Stick with the leaders in each subsector and the chances for investing success are multiplied.

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