Top 5 Semiconductor Stocks To Invest In Right Now

Top 5 Semiconductor Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Applied Mater ials Inc.(AMAT)

Applied Materials, Inc. provides manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, flat panel display, solar photovoltaic (PV), and related industries worldwide. The company?s Silicon Systems Group segment offers a range of manufacturing equipment used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits. This segment provides systems that perform primary processes used in chip fabrication, including atomic layer deposition, chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor deposition, electrochemical deposition, rapid thermal processing, chemical mechanical planarization, wet cleaning, and wafer metrology and inspection, as well as systems that etch or inspect circuit patterns on masks used in the photolithography process. Its Applied Global Services segment offers products and services designed to enhance the performance and productivity, and reduce the environmental impact of the fab operations of semiconductor, liquid crystal displays (LCDs), and solar P V manufacturers. The company?s Display segment provides products for manufacturing thin film transistor LCDs for televisions, personal computers (PCs), tablet PCs, smartphones, and other consumer-oriented electronic applications. Its Energy and Environmental Solutions segment offers manufacturing systems for the generation and conservation of energy, as well as manufacturing solutions for wafer-based crystalline silicon applications. This segment also provides roll-to-roll vacuum Web coating systems for deposition of a range of films on flexible substrates for functional, aesthetic, or optical properties; and roll-to-roll machine for depositing ultra-thin aluminum films for flexible packaging applications. The company serves manufacturers of semiconductor wafers and chips, flat panel LCDs, solar PV cells and modules, and other electronic devices. Applied Materials, Inc. was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.

! Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lu Wang]

  Red Hat Inc. slumped 12 percent after billings at the largest seller of the Linux operating system trailed estimates. Homebuilders gained 2.3 percent as a group after a report showed home prices increased by the most in more than seven years and Lennar Corp.s profit beat analyst estimates. Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) advanced 9.1 percent after agreeing to buy Tokyo Electron Ltd. for about $9.39 billion in stock.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Semiconductor equipment maker Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) announced before markets opened on Tuesday that the companys board has agreed to a merger with Tokyo-traded Tokyo Electron Ltd., another maker of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The resulting company will be valued at $29 billion. The merger is expected to be completed in the second-quarter of next year, pending approval by shareholders of both companies and various regulators.

• [By Sue Chang and Saumya Vaishampayan]

  Applied Materials (AMAT) shares jumped nearly 7%. The company and Tokyo Electron Ltd. (JP:8035) agreed to merge on Tuesday in an all-stock deal expected to close in the middle to second half of 2014. The combined company will have a market capitalization of about $29 billion. Tokyo Electron is a Japanese semiconductor production equipment maker founded in 1963.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big Earnings Movers: Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) is up 8.7% at $54.94. Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) is down 0.3% at $17.51 on a weak forecast. Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) is down 1% at $62.81. Youku Tudou Inc. (NYSE: YOKU) is up 11.2% at $29.30. InterCloud Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ICLD) is up 265.9% at $9.33 on solid results and higher hopes.

source from T! op Stocks! To Buy For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-5-semiconductor-stocks-to-invest-in-right-now-5.html