Applied Materials Blows Through the Numbers By Bob Faulkner About this article: For Faulkner's thoughts leading up to the call, click here. Applied Materials reported fiscal fourth-quarter results Wednesday evening that easily exceeded the high end of Street expectations. More important, the outlook for the fiscal first quarter is significantly above current consensus. Revenue in the period was $1.53 billion (-25% year over year, +35% sequentially) and GAAP EPS was 10 cents (pro forma was 11 cents). Gross margins were 36.6%, down 250 basis points (bps) from the year-ago level but up nearly 800 bps from the figure reported last quarter. The company moved to an operating profit for the first time in nearly a year. Operating margin was 11.3%, down 220 bps from the year-ago period. Cash from operations improved to a positive $241 million, or about double the prior period. Cash increased about $70 million to $2.22 billion. Accounts receivable increased about $200 million but day sales... Or, call us at 1-866-321-TSCM (8726) Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. ET. Outside the U.S. and in Canada, call 1-212-321-5200.

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