New York, Feb 6, 2026, 12:35 EST — Regular session
- Shares of Applied Materials climbed 5.7%, hitting $321.20 by midday trading
- Citi raised its price target to $400 and maintained a Buy rating ahead of the Feb. 12 earnings report
- Traders are focused on guidance regarding chip-factory investment and demand from China
Shares of Applied Materials jumped 5.7% to hit $321.20 on Friday, leading the charge among U.S. chip-equipment stocks in midday trading.
The surge comes as investors untangle the “picks-and-shovels” angle from the wider AI frenzy — a divide that’s grown messier this week amid Big Tech’s rising capex. “The market is no longer tolerating spending for spending’s sake,” said Mark Hawtin, head of global equities at Liontrust. 1
A new analyst note gave shares a boost. Citi’s Atif Malik bumped the price target on Applied Materials to $400 from $250, maintaining a Buy rating. He cited expectations for earnings to beat consensus thanks to upward revisions in spending from leading foundry and memory-chip firms. 2
Chip stocks spearheaded Wall Street’s bounce back following a tech-driven selloff earlier this week, according to a Reuters report. “The problem is we have to differentiate between potentially bad and certainly bad,” said Kristina Hooper, chief market strategist at Man Group. 3
Peers followed suit. Lam Research jumped 7.3%, KLA climbed 7.8%, and ASML was up 4.3% by midday.
Overnight, Reuters reported that Taiwan’s Winbond Electronics snapped up machinery from Applied Materials South EastAsia for T$7.45 billion, marking another sign of steady equipment orders fueled by memory demand. 4
Applied plans to release its fiscal first-quarter results on Feb. 12, with an earnings call scheduled for 4:30 p.m. ET that day. 5
Investors will be watching closely for any shift in the company’s outlook on wafer-fab equipment spending — the gear chipmakers use to build and upgrade fabs — and how that might impact the back half of the year, when the spending cycle can shift abruptly.
China remains a major concern. Applied Materials flagged that stricter U.S. export rules might limit its access to segments of the Chinese market, despite AI-driven memory demand bolstering some spending areas. 6
Tokyo Electron boosted its annual net profit forecast by 12.7% on Friday, signaling some stabilization in the equipment cycle in Asia. Yet in the U.S., investors remain wary, ready to sell off any signs of costly expansion that lacks immediate returns. 7
Applied Materials’ next key moment comes on Feb. 12, when it issues guidance. Investors will be watching closely to see if management hints at more stable customer demand through mid-2026 or warns of further uncertainty.
