Applied Materials Stock Jumps on Strong Earnings Beat

The chip equipment maker reported adjusted earnings of $2.13 a share for the January quarter, compared with the consensus estimate of $1.90 a share among Wall Street analysts tracked by FactSet. Applied Materials also forecast a range of potential revenue for the current quarter, which ends in April, with a midpoint of $6.5 billion, compared with the consensus view of $6.34 billion. “Our leadership positions at key semiconductor inflections support continued outperformance as customers ramp next-generation chip technologies critical to AI and IoT [Internet of Things] over the next several years,” Gary Dickerson, president and CEO, said in the earnings release.