Semiconductor equipment supplier Applied Materials (AMAT) on Thursday night exceeded analysts’ expectations for its first fiscal quarter and led upwards for the current period. AMAT’s shares rose in protracted negotiations.
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The Santa Clara, Calif.-Based company earned $ 1.39 per share on sales of $ 5.16 billion in the quarter ended Jan. 31. Analysts had expected Applied Materials earnings of $ 1.28 per share on sales of $ 4.97 billion. On a year-over-year basis, profits increased 42%, while sales increased 24%.
The company’s gross profit margin improved to 45.5% from 44.6% in the prior year period.
In the current quarter, Applied Materials expects to earn an adjusted $ 1.50 per share on sales of $ 5.39 billion. This is based on the midpoint of your prospect. Wall Street predicted earnings of $ 1.28 per share and sales of $ 4.96 billion. In the second fiscal quarter of last year, Applied Materials earned 89 cents in sales of $ 3.96 billion.
AMAT shares rise in late trading
In the after-hours stock market today, AMAT’s shares alternated between modest gains and losses before becoming solidly positive. In the latest negotiations, it rose 4.8%, close to 118.85. During Thursday’s regular session, AMAT’s shares fell 2% to 113.43 during a general bearish day for the market.
“In our first fiscal quarter, we saw continued demand acceleration in our semiconductor business, as key macro and industry trends fuel growing silicon consumption in a wide range of markets and applications,” said the chief executive. Gary Dickerson in a press release.
He added: “We have a strong momentum across the company, as our broad portfolio and exposure to inflections of technology, combined with the traction of our new products, place us in an excellent position to substantially outperform our markets again in 2021 and beyond. “
Increase in AMAT inventory after two points of purchase
On November 5, AMAT’s shares came out of an 11-week consolidation period at a point of purchase of 70, according to the IBD MarketSmith charts. A tight three-week pattern in early January provided an additional point of purchase. AMAT shares reached a record high of 121.13 on Tuesday.
AMAT shares are in second place among the 34 shares of the IBD semiconductor equipment industry group, according to the IBD stock verification tool. In addition, AMAT’s shares are on the IBD 50 list of the best performing growth stocks.
In addition to AMAT shares, another semiconductor equipment stock moving with earnings news on Thursday Ultra Clean Holdings (UCTT).
Ultra Clean Stock falls despite Beat-and-Raise report
At the end of Wednesday, Ultra Clean, from Hayward, Calif., Released a hit and raise report. It earned an adjusted value of 81 cents per share, an increase of 103% year on year, in sales of $ 369.6 million, an increase of 29% in the fourth quarter.
For the current quarter, Ultra Clean expects to earn 87 adjusted cents per share on sales of $ 390 million. This is based on the midpoint of your orientation. Wall Street predicted a profit of 72 cents per share on sales of $ 380.2 million in the March quarter. In the previous year’s quarter, Ultra Clean earned 52 cents a share on sales of $ 320.9 million.
Ultra Clean’s shares fell 4.5% to 48.42 on Thursday.
Follow Patrick Seitz on Twitter at @IBD_PSeitz for more stories about consumer technology, software and semiconductor stocks.
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