Quarterly earnings results are a good time to check in on a company’s progress, especially compared to its peers in the same sector. Today we are looking at Semtech (NASDAQ: SMTC) and the best and worst performers in the semiconductor manufacturing industry.

The semiconductor industry is driven by demand for advanced electronic products like smartphones, PCs, servers, and data storage. The need for technologies like artificial intelligence, 5G networks, and smart cars is also creating the next wave of growth for the industry. Keeping up with this dynamism requires new tools that can design, fabricate, and test chips at ever smaller sizes and more complex architectures, creating a dire need for semiconductor capital manufacturing equipment.

The 14 semiconductor manufacturing stocks we track reported a very strong Q1. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.2% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 0.5% below.

Thankfully, share prices of the companies have been resilient as they are up 6.2% on average since the latest earnings results.

Semtech (NASDAQ: SMTC)

A public company since the late 1960s, Semtech (NASDAQ: SMTC) is a provider of analog and mixed-signal semiconductors used for Internet of Things systems and cloud connectivity.

Semtech reported revenues of $291 million, up 15.9% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 2.6%. Overall, it was a stunning quarter for the company with a significant improvement in its inventory levels and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 1.7% since reporting and currently trades at $167.17.

Is now the time to buy Semtech? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Best Q1: Kulicke and Soffa (NASDAQ: KLIC)

Headquartered in Singapore, Kulicke & Soffa (NASDAQ: KLIC) is a provider of production equipment and tools used to assemble semiconductor devices

Kulicke and Soffa reported revenues of $242.6 million, up 49.8% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 5.5%. The business had a stunning quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and adjusted operating income estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 14.8% since reporting. It currently trades at $107.67.

Is now the time to buy Kulicke and Soffa? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q1: Photronics (NASDAQ: PLAB)

Sporting a global footprint of facilities, Photronics (NASDAQ: PLAB) is a manufacturer of photomasks, templates used to transfer patterns onto semiconductor wafers.

Photronics reported revenues of $209.9 million, flat year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 2.8%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted revenue guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations and a significant miss of analysts’ revenue estimates.

Photronics delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth in the group. As expected, the stock is down 41.9% since the results and currently trades at $31.10.

Read our full analysis of Photronics’s results here.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT)

Founded in 1967 as the first company to develop tools for other businesses in the semiconductor industry, Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT) is the largest provider of semiconductor wafer fabrication equipment.

Applied Materials reported revenues of $7.91 billion, up 11.4% year on year. This print surpassed analysts’ expectations by 2.7%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter as it also put up revenue guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations and a solid beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is up 12.3% since reporting and currently trades at $494.70.

Read our full, actionable report on Applied Materials here, it’s free.

Teradyne (NASDAQ: TER)

Sporting most major chip manufacturers as its customers, Teradyne (NASDAQ: TER) is a US-based supplier of automated test equipment for semiconductors as well as other technologies and devices.

Teradyne reported revenues of $1.28 billion, up 87% year on year. This number topped analysts’ expectations by 5.6%. It was an exceptional quarter as it also produced a significant improvement in its inventory levels and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Teradyne scored the biggest analyst estimate beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is up 5% since reporting and currently trades at $399.11.

Read our full, actionable report on Teradyne here, it’s free.

Market Update

Late in 2025 into early 2026, there was hand-wringing around artificial intelligence. For software companies, the fear was that AI would erode pricing power and compress margins as new tools made it easier to replicate what once required expensive enterprise platforms. Crypto investors had their own version of the same anxiety: if AI agents could trade, allocate capital, and manage wallets autonomously, what exactly was the long-term value of today’s crypto infrastructure?

These concerns triggered a noticeable rotation away from these sectors and into safer havens. But markets rarely dwell on one narrative for long. Spring 2026 came, and the focus shifted abruptly from technological disruption to geopolitical risk. The US’ conflict with Iran became the dominant driver of market psychology, and when geopolitics takes center stage, the script changes quickly. Investors stop debating growth rates and start worrying about oil supply, inflation, and global stability.

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