Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT ) late Wednesday [Feb 15, 2017 | 4:02pm] posted market-beating earnings and offered a much better than expected outlook, as it continues to see robust demand for its products.

Written by StockNews.com

The Santa Clara-based semiconductor components maker reported adjusted Q1 EPS of $0.67, which was $0.01 better than the Wall Street consensus estimate of $0.66. Revenues rose 45.2% from last year to $3.28 billion, also topping analysts’ $3.27 billion view.

Looking ahead, AMAT forecast adjusted Q2 EPS ranging from $0.72 to $0.80, which is significantly higher than the $0.62 that analysts are looking for. Q2 revenues are seen between $3.45 and $3.60 billion, also well ahead of Wall Street’s $3.21 billion estimate.

The company commented via press release:

“We set new records for earnings and orders in our first quarter, and 2017 is shaping up to be an outstanding year for Applied Materials,” said Gary Dickerson, President and CEO. “Our inflection-focused innovation strategy is delivering results and we are increasingly confident that we can maintain our trajectory of sustainable growth and raise the ceiling on our performance.”

...Year-to-date, AMAT has gained 10.16%, versus a 5.06% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

AMAT currently has a StockNews.com POWR Rating of A (Strong Buy), and is ranked #5 of 97 stocks in the Semiconductor & Wireless Chip category.