Diamonds and Dogs

8/18/17

The chips keep rolling. Applied Materials (AMAT), the world's largest supplier of tools used to make semiconductors, is up 2% following better-than-expected quarterly profits. Revenue rose 41% to $2.53 billion. Management said, pervasive demand for electronics means that their markets are getting larger and substantially less cyclical. Stifel analyst said Applied' s report was "stellar" and expects a record year in 2018.

Foot Locker (FL) gets the boot. The shoe retailer is down 23% to a new 52 week low following disappointing earnings. Total sales fell by 4.4% for the second quarter due largely in part to swings in forex prices. Gross margins dropped to 29.6%. Comparable same-store sales dropped 6% versus a year ago, which marked the first time in over seven years that Foot Locker registered a negative comparable same-stores figure. Nike and Under Armour are lower in sympathy.