Not that fast... Lisa Su denies rumors that she's taking over IBM.
AMD CEO Lisa Su denied a rumor that she wants to replace Ginni Rometty as IBM's chief exec, but experts say that IBM could do a lot worse than this 'superstar'
AMD CEO Lisa Su on Tuesday denied a Wcctech report that she was eyeing the top post at IBM, saying, "I love AMD."
The rumor hit the week AMD was rolling out its much-anticipated new server chip.
An analyst said Su would be an 'aggressively-pursued' executive given her successful stint at AMD — which has seen the chip giant's stock price go from about $3 to about $30.
AMD CEO Lisa Su rarely tweets, but she made sure to do so Tuesday morning to shoot down a report that she may be leaving the chip giant as she eyes IBM's top post.
"Just for the record, zero truth to this rumor," Su tweeted, replying to a Wcctech report that made the claim. "I love AMD and the best is yet to come."
Still, it appears the question of IBM's succession is in the air: Last week, a Morgan Stanley analyst said that Jim Whitehurst, CEO of Red Hat, is widely seen as the heir apparent to IBM chief exec Ginni Rometty. It's not clear where the interest in IBM's line of succession comes from, however, as Rometty hasn't given any indication of leaving.
The denial was only Su's 152nd tweet, which came shortly before AMD unwrapped its new and much-anticipated data center chip. That timing stood out to an AMD spokesperson reached by Business Insider, who called it "suspicious."
"AMD is up 3 percent today," Marty Wolf, president of Martnwolf M&A Advisors, told Business Insider. "What that says to me is that the market isn't worried she's leaving, and her tweet reassuring her commitment to AMD worked."
But the rumor had little impact on AMD's stock which was last up nearly 3% at $28.80. But the speculation highlighted interest in Su, who has won praise for her leadership at AMD where she took over as CEO in 2014. AMD's stock was worth roughly $3 when Su took over as CEO. Today, it's trading at nearly $30.
"There is no doubt in my mind that Lisa Su would be an aggressively-pursued executive for a CEO or president position in a larger tech company," analyst Patrick Moorehead of Moor Insights & Strategy, told Business Insider.
"Her successful track record and style speak for itself. The AMD board of directors knows this and should provide her anything within reason to retain her."
"She's a superstar," Wolf said.
Under Su, AMD has become a stronger competitor to archrival Intel in PCs and data centers. AMD new products also have won rave reviews and has outpaced Intel in process technology.
It hasn't always been a smooth ride under Su. Last month, AMD reported a weaker-than-expected forecast that sent its stock sliding and igniting fears that the anticipated gains against Intel in the data center market may not be that significant.
Both companies are also wrestling with a slump in the data center market and the uncertainty caused by the raging US-China trade war.
Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported that AMD gave China access to state-of-the-art processors and violated US trade laws. The company denied the allegation.