As the second-quarter earnings season kicks off, analysts say that stocks of semiconductor companies that have a foothold in the artificial intelligence (AI) space remain the most attractive.

C.J. Muse, an analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald, wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday: "We believe that AI-leveraged stocks remain the most attractive. In addition, we expect NAND and HDD prices to continue to rise."

Profit estimates for chipmakers have also been significantly raised.

Top stocks to watch include Nvidia(NVDA.US), Western Digital(WDC.US), ASML(ASML.US), Applied Materials(AMAT.US) and Nvidia(NXPI.US).

Cantor raised its price targets on nine companies:

Cantor also said that semiconductor and semiconductor equipment companies are still in the early stages of the current recovery cycle.

Muse added: "We are now in the fifth quarter of the cycle, and the average cycle is nine quarters. We believe this cycle will be longer."

Cantor is bullish on several large companies, including Nvidia, Micron Technology(MU.US), Broadcom(BRCH.US), Marvell Technology(MRVL.US), Applied Materials, ASML, Nvidia and Western Digital.

Deutsche Bank also expects AI-driven semiconductor stocks to perform well as the second-quarter earnings season arrives. However, the bank noted that investors are growing increasingly skeptical.

Deutsche Bank analyst Ross Seymore wrote in a note: "Investors are generally optimistic about the 'winners' of the current AI mega-trend, but we believe their outlook on performance is becoming more nuanced as there is uncertainty around whether the momentum can sustain."

The bank rates Broadcom, Marvell Technology, Astera Labs(ASTRA.US), Nvidia and Onsemi(ON.US) "buy."

Deutsche Bank also likes chipmakers. Deutsche Bank analyst Melissa Weathers said, "Semiconductor stocks have rallied 10-20% or more since the second quarter began, with P/E multiples near or above the high. We believe that estimated revisions will be a key determinant of future upside."