Applied Materials rallies as quarterly earnings beat Wall Street's expectations

Applied Materials Inc. late Thursday reported its first-quarter earnings fell to $286 million, or 25 cents a share, from $348 million, or 28 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding items, the maker of semiconductor manufacturing tools earned 26 cents a share. Revenue fell 5% to $2.26 billion while new orders dropped 6% to $2.28 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast adjusted earnings of 25 cents a share on revenue of $2.24 billion. In the second quarter, AMAT expects adjusted earnings per share of 30 cents to 34 cents while revenue is likely to rise 5% to 10% sequentially. Analysts project second-quarter earnings of 26 cents a share and revenue of $2.28 billion. AMAT shares jumped more than 7% in after-hours trading.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.