Investing.com -- Lam Research beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter profit and revenue on strong demand for chipmaking equipment tied to artificial intelligence, and forecast third-quarter results above expectations. Shares marginally up in extended trading.
The California-based semiconductor equipment maker reported adjusted earnings of $1.27 per share, topping analysts’ average estimate of $1.16. Revenue rose to $5.34 billion for the quarter, compared with expectations of $5.21 billion.Lam also issued an upbeat outlook. It forecast third-quarter 2026 earnings in the range of $1.25 to $1.45 per share, above the consensus estimate of $1.20. The company expects revenue of between $5.4 billion and $6.0 billion, compared with analysts’ average forecast of $5.33 billion.
Demand for chipmaking tools remains elevated as chipmakers ramp up spending to support AI-related workloads.
A surge in demand for AI-powered processors has driven higher investment in wafer fabrication equipment, the sophisticated and costly tools used to manufacture advanced semiconductors. Industry data from SEMI and academic research on AI compute intensity show capital spending increasingly concentrated in leading-edge logic and memory capacity.
Lam has been a key beneficiary of this trend. The company develops equipment used in critical stages of semiconductor manufacturing, including wafer processing and the wiring of semiconductor devices. Its tools are essential for producing chips capable of handling the growing computing requirements of AI applications.Though Lam faces intense competition in the global semiconductor equipment market from peers such as Applied Materials, Analog Devices and Europe’s ASML
