Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT), one of the largest suppliers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, reported fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $10.41 billion, an increase of 53% over the same period a year earlier. Adjusted earnings came in at $4.16 per share, up 92% year-over-year, with both figures topping Wall Street's expectations. The company is headquartered in Santa Clara, California. Its equipment is used to produce the chips that underpin modern electronics, and because those tools sit at the start of the chipmaking supply chain, its quarterly reports are widely used as a gauge of how aggressively chip manufacturers are investing in new production capacity.

The results were released on November 12, 2026. The quarter closed out a fiscal year that ended October 25, 2026, and capped the period with record cash generation for the chip equipment maker.

Fourth-Quarter Performance

The bottom line grew even faster than the top line. Non-GAAP earnings per share climbed 92% to $4.16, meaning profit per share nearly doubled within the space of a single year.

Margins improved alongside earnings, telling the efficiency side of the story. Quarterly non-GAAP gross margin reached 50.6%, an improvement of 250 basis points from the year-ago quarter — in practical terms, the company kept just over half of every revenue dollar as gross profit.

Full-Year Results

Applied Materials' fiscal year typically wraps up in late October, and the latest annual numbers showed steadier growth than the final quarter's surge. Annual revenue totaled $34.45 billion, an increase of 21% over the prior year. Full-year non-GAAP earnings per share reached $12.89, up 37%, while gross margin for the year came in at 50.1%, an improvement of 130 basis points.

The gap between the quarterly and annual growth rates is worth pausing on. Fourth-quarter revenue growth of 53% ran well ahead of the full-year pace of 21%, which suggests momentum built as the year went on rather than faded.

Record Cash Generation

Cash flow also set a record. Operating cash flow for the fiscal year came to $8.87 billion, the highest annual total in Applied Materials' history. Of that amount, the company returned $4.75 billion to shareholders in the form of dividends and stock buybacks — a payout equal to more than half of the year's operating cash flow.

Segment Outlook and R&D Partnerships

Looking ahead, the company projects that its Semiconductor Systems business — the core equipment segment — will grow by more than 40% for the full calendar year 2026, a company-set target that gives readers a concrete yardstick for measuring the segment's trajectory in future reports.

Applied Materials has also been investing in collaborative research and development. Following the unveiling of its EPIC Center, a research and development facility in Silicon Valley, the company has announced 15 R&D partnerships tied to the new center, connecting its equipment development to outside research groups.