Stocks moving in after hours: Ross Stores, Applied Materials

These are the stocks moving in after-hours trade on May 18, 2023.

Ross Stores (ROST)

Ross Stores share dipped in the post market after the low-priced retailer said it still sees comp sales growth for the current quarter to stay “relatively flat.”

“There remains a high level of uncertainty in today’s macro-economic and geopolitical environments,” Barbara Rentler, CEO of Ross Stores, said in a statement. “In addition, prolonged inflationary pressures continue to negatively impact our low- to moderate-income customers’ discretionary spend.”

Earnings per share for this year’s second quarter are forecast to be $1.07 to $1.14 versus $1.11 for the same period last year.

The company posted first quarter EPS of $1.09 along with sales of $4.49 billion. The three month period’s operating margin of 10.1% came in below Wall Street estimates of 10.2%.

Analysts were paying close attention to commentary about the health of the consumer. Recent results from Walmart and Target show shoppers are trading down amid inflation and are more cautious when it comes to spending on discretionary items.

Applied Materials (AMAT)

Applied Materials’ second-quarter fiscal 2023 net sales grew 6% year-over-year to $6.63 billion, topping estimates of $6.37 billion. Adjusted earnings per share of $2.00 came in above Wall Street consensus expectations of $1.83.

The supplier of manufacturing equipment and software for semiconductors generated $2.29 billion in cash from operations and bought back $800 million in shares during the quarter. It also doled out $219 million in dividends.

The company sees third quarter net sales coming in between $5.75 million to $6.55 million, versus estimates of $5.97 billion. Adjusted EPS is expected between $1.56 to $1.92 versus analyst estimates of $1.63

Applied Materials shares are up 33% year-to-date. Chip-related stocks have surged over the last several months amid an overall rally in the tech space, excitement over artificial intelligence, and an expected recovery in semis during the second half of the year.

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