Let's not beat around the silicon bush. Semiconductor stocks have made many investors very wealthy over the years. From the industry's inception in the 1970s and the personal computer boom of the next two decades to the internet, smartphones, and the ongoing artificial intelligence rush, the hardware that made it all possible often turned out to be a great investment.

And it's not too late to get in on the semiconductor opportunity. Recent market darlings like Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) might be running low on long-term growth fuel at this point, but there are many smaller names available. I'm particularly interested in NXP Semiconductors (NXPI 1.29%) and Cirrus Logic (CRUS 0.14%) right now.

These two chip stocks seem poised to deliver wealth-building returns in the next few years. Here's how.

Is NXP's trade-related dip an opportunity in disguise?

Dutch-American chipmaker NXP's stock is down by 18% in 2025. The stock has generally followed the S&P 500 chart over the last seven years, dating back to the canceled merger with larger peer Qualcomm.

The recent volatility and price drops make perfect sense, given the unpredictable state of international trade. With only 14% of its 2024 revenues collected directly from American customers but 36% from Chinese sources, NXP is quite sensitive to foreign trade disruption. The car market is especially important, accounting for 57% of last year's sales and some of NXP's strongest top-line growth.

I'm sure you'll hear more about the tariff threat and international tensions in next week's first-quarter earnings call. It may be prudent to wait for the April 28 event before taking action on this stock. However, the stock looks undervalued after the trade-related price drops. NXP's shares are trading at just 17.5 times adjusted earnings and 14.4 times forward-looking earnings estimates -- near two-year lows on both metrics.

So, it looks like the market makers have already accounted for a massive slowdown in NXP's business as the tariff tension plays out. I'm not saying that the stock can't fall any further, but it already strikes me as an affordable bet on edge computing and increasingly computerized vehicles. I can't wait to see NXP's business and stock spring back to life in the next macroeconomic upswing.

Cirrus Logic: More than just Apple's audio sidekick

Then there's Cirrus Logic. The maker of power controllers and high-quality audio chips is trading at just 15.5 times adjusted earnings and 12.5 times forward earnings. These multiyear lows make even NXP look pricy in comparison.

This company is best known for being a longtime Apple (AAPL 1.36%) supplier. Since time immemorial, its audio circuits have been found in iPhones and iPads,  as well as the original iPods. So, any market adjustments that are bad news for Apple could be even worse to Cirrus Logic and its investors.

However, the company is expanding its market reach nowadays. Cirrus Logic controllers are finally found in several high-end smartphones and laptops that Apple does not make. It also supplies more parts to the devices it has already populated, adding functions such as haptic feedback and battery management processors. The long-standing Apple relationship is a respectable stamp of quality approval, given Cupertino's refined hardware standards and tight requirements. It shouldn't be hard to find clients in the PC and Android worlds from that starting point.

In all fairness, I've been saying that for years. The difference is that Cirrus Logic has started to turn that diversified dream into a reality.

Like NXP, Cirrus Logic has been dragged down to a rock-bottom valuation by bearish market vibes. I don't think that's fair, given the company's market expansion success.

The tariff-struggle era may be painful, but you should buy when there's blood in the streets. If you're worried about starting your position at an imperfect price point, you could buy the stock in thirds over a period of time. If prices go up, you've started early. If they head downward, you'll buy the next tranche at a lower price.