Applied Materials Beats Estimates

Second-quarter profit was flat at Applied Materials (AMAT Quote), but the company delivered results above Wall Street forecasts.

The semiconductor equipment maker said net income for the quarter ended April 29 fell slightly to $411.4 million from $412.8 million a year earlier.

Earnings per share, however, rose to 29 cents a share from 26 cents a share on a lower share count.

Excluding several items, but including stock-compensation expenses, Applied Materials earned 34 cents a share, beating Thomson Financial's consensus analyst estimate of 28 cents a share.

Second-quarter revenue rose 13% to $2.53 billion from $2.25 billion, beating analysts' estimate of $2.36 billion.

Gross margin fell to 44.9% from 46.5% a year earlier.

New orders of $2.65 billion for the second quarter rose 6% from $2.49 billion a year earlier.

Shares of Applied Materials were recently up 34 cents, or 1.7%, in after-hours trading to $20.12.