By Angela Chen
Applied Materials Inc. on Thursday gave muted guidance for the
current quarter, and said revenue rose less than expected in the
July quarter.
In after-hours trading, the company's shares--which have fallen
about 32% this year--fell about 1.7%.
For the current quarter, the company expects sales to be flat to
down 7% from the previous quarter, and earnings in the range of 27
to 31 cents a share. Analysts had called for earnings of 33 cents a
share.
Applied Materials, based in Santa Clara, Calif., has a broad
product line of machines used in processing silicon wafers to make
computer chips. Applied also sells equipment used in making LCD
displays and solar panels.
The company's results often swing widely as chip makers react to
demand by building or cutting production capacity.
In the latest quarter, orders grew 17% to $2.89 billion.
Overall, Applied Materials reported earnings of $329 million, or
27 cents a share, compared with $301 million, or 24 cents a share,
a year earlier.
Excluding special items, earnings were 33 cents.
Revenue increased to $2.49 billion from $2.27 billion a year
ago.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters projected 33 cents a share on
revenue of $2.54 billion.
In April, Applied Materials and Tokyo Electron Ltd. of Japan
abandoned a $29 billion merger that would have created a giant
supplier of equipment used by chip makers, citing Justice
Department opposition. The failed deal was pending since September
2013.
Write to Angela Chen at angela.chen@wsj.com
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