New York, Feb 3, 2026, 6:28 PM EST — After-hours
- Applied Materials fell roughly 3% Tuesday, ending its brief one-day rally.
- Morgan Stanley raised its price target on the stock Monday.
- The next key date is the company’s Feb. 12 earnings report and guidance release.
Applied Materials shares dropped 2.96% Tuesday, closing at $318.67 on volume of roughly 10.5 million shares. The stock now sits about 7.5% below its 52-week peak of $344.60, reached on Jan. 29. (MarketWatch)
This slide is significant as chip-equipment stocks have been acting like a gauge for the next wave of semiconductor investment, and the market has turned twitchy. With tech valuations already stretched, even minor shifts in sentiment have sparked sharp sell-offs.
Applied announced it plans to release fiscal first-quarter results on Feb. 12, followed by an earnings call at 4:30 p.m. ET. The update will provide insights into wafer-fab equipment demand — the machinery behind chip manufacturing — and how customer orders are trending. (Nasdaq)
Stocks fell across Wall Street, dragged down by concerns that Anthropic’s latest tools might intensify competition among software firms and squeeze their profit margins. “We’ve got an expensive market and expectations are really high,” noted John Campbell from Allspring Global Investments. Art Hogan at B. Riley Wealth added, “We’re seeing a lot of software companies across the spectrum get hit.” (Reuters)
Semiconductor equipment stocks also took a hit. Lam Research dropped 3.12%, while KLA declined 3.89% during regular trading. (MarketWatch)
Monday saw Morgan Stanley’s Shane Brett hike his price target to $364 from $273, maintaining an Overweight rating—meaning he expects Applied Materials to outperform its peers. The bank’s supply-chain checks suggest a pickup in near-term demand, with forecasts pointing to Applied beating consensus on first-quarter results. (Seeking Alpha)
Shares jumped 1.89% Monday, closing at $328.40, but then dipped on Tuesday. (MarketWatch)
On Feb. 12, investors will tune in for updates on memory-related tools, advanced packaging demand, and shifts in customer spending plans. Guidance often drives these stocks just as much as the quarterly results do.
Still, the risks loom large: policy moves and China exposure. Applied Materials cautioned that wider U.S. chip-export restrictions could slash roughly $600 million from its fiscal 2026 revenue. And these regulations can change more quickly than factories can adjust. (Reuters)
The next key date is Feb. 12, when Applied will report earnings and update its outlook. Traders will be watching closely to see if the late January rally was driven by actual orders rather than just optimism.
