Applied Materials

AMAT

Market cap $293B

Philippe Laffont is looking beyond the big chipmakers to find opportunities in artificial intelligence. These three companies all provide essential tools and services supporting the AI boom.

Applied Materials targets fast growth in logic, DRAM and HBM through 2026, riding on GAA, hybrid bonding and AI-driven memory demand.

Lilly delivered exceptional performance over the period, driven by sustained strength in its diabetes and obesity portfolio. Applied Materials outperformed during the quarter, as AI-driven wafer-fab investment and advanced packaging needs sustained orders and backlog visibility. BlackRock underperformed during the period, as margin pressures and valuation concerns overshadowed otherwise strong fundamentals.

Here is how Applied Materials (AMAT) and AUO (AUOTY) have performed compared to their sector so far this year.

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Feb. 24, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Applied Materials, Inc. today announced the recipients of Supplier Excellence Awards for contributions made to Applied's business over the past year. The awards reflect outstanding technical and operational performance in areas including quality, service, sustainability, lead time, delivery, cost and responsiveness.

Artificial intelligence has dominated market headlines for more than a year. Investors have chased chip designers, data center operators, and software platforms powering large language models.

Applied Materials is gaining from a surge in HBM demand, while Amkor Technology grapples with softer demand across some of its end markets.

The ranking improvement moves the company into the top 10% of its peer group, driven by record-breaking operational efficiency and an aggressive pivot toward artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure.

Tim Bohen (@Stockstotrade) is back with his Big 3, all of which have seen significant rallies over the last few months. He makes the case for continuing runs in Applied Materials (AMAT), SanDisk (SNDK), and RTX Corp. (RTX).

When deciding whether to buy, sell, or hold a stock, investors often rely on analyst recommendations. Media reports about rating changes by these brokerage-firm-employed (or sell-side) analysts often influence a stock's price, but are they really important?