Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages trade in a relatively tight range, firmly below their baselines.

Applied Materials (AMAT 434.80, -5.76, -1.31%) is trading modestly lower despite reporting strong Q2 (Apr) results last night. The company continued its long streak of EPS upside, while revenue increased 11.4% year-over-year to $7.91 billion, nicely above expectations. Guidance was also particularly strong, with Q3 EPS of $3.16-3.56 and revenue of $8.45-9.45 billion coming in well above expectations. AMAT also raised its CY26 growth outlook for its semiconductor equipment business to more than 30% from more than 20%.

The modestly lower reaction does not appear to reflect fundamentals, but rather the stock's strong run into the report and a broader pullback in AI/semi names as investors digest the recent surge.