Process Control — Metrology & Inspection

Onto Innovation has emerged as a key beneficiary of the AI semiconductor investment cycle, with its stock jumping 125.6% in a year, roughly matching the Zacks Nanotechnology industry's 125.7% gain and outpacing the Zacks Computer and Technology sector and the S&P 500 composite, which rose 26% and 15.5%, respectively. The company reported record second-quarter revenue of $343.1 million, up 35.3% year over year and nearly 18% sequentially, with non-GAAP earnings per share of $1.93 versus $1.25 a year earlier, while backlog exceeded $1 billion for the first time. Management raised its second-half 2026 revenue, margin and EPS outlook, guiding third-quarter revenue of $380 to $400 million and expecting gross margin to expand by another 50 basis points in each of the third and fourth quarters, with operating margin improving 200 basis points to 31.5-32.5% in the third quarter and exceeding 33% by year-end. The company also raised its 2026 advanced-packaging growth outlook to at least 80% from more than 50% previously and now expects advanced-nodes revenue to grow more than 35% in 2026, up from about 25%, helped by its Dragonfly G5 platform and more than $200 million in Dragonfly orders from a single OSAT, mostly for 2027 delivery. In April 2026, Onto Innovation agreed to acquire a 27% stake in Rigaku Holdings for about $710 million, and it ended the second quarter with $1.88 billion in cash and short-term investments, though risks include customer concentration, with four customers accounting for 57.3% of first-half 2026 revenue, and a forward price/earnings multiple of 30.23X versus the industry's 5.83X.

KLA Corporation's backlog climbed to $12.57 billion at the end of fiscal 2026 from $7.86 billion a year earlier, driven primarily by demand tied to the AI infrastructure buildout. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, the company raised its calendar 2026 wafer fabrication equipment market expectation, including advanced packaging, to the low-$150-billion range, up from its earlier view of more than $140 billion and compared with roughly $120 billion in calendar 2025. KLA expects second-half calendar 2026 revenues to increase roughly 20% from the first half as additional supply becomes available, and it forecasts advanced-packaging process-control systems revenues of approximately $1.1 billion in calendar 2026, up more than 70% year over year. Rivals are expanding too: Applied Materials expects its process diagnostics and control business to grow more than 50% in 2026, while ASML Holding expects full-year 2026 advanced foundry and logic revenues to rise about 25%, memory revenues to increase 75% and EUV revenues to grow roughly 45%. KLA shares have risen 55.7% year to date, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its earnings stands at $1.18 per share, unchanged over the past 30 days and implying 34.09% year-over-year growth.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co is accelerating its 2-nanometre capacity expansion, with monthly output projected to reach about 120,000 wafers by the end of 2026, ahead of earlier expectations of 90,000 to 100,000 wafers, according to Taiwanese publication EDN. Customers including Apple, Nvidia, AMD, Qualcomm and MediaTek have recently raised orders for TSMC's 2nm family capacity by 10% to 20%, the report said, citing industry sources. TSMC is bringing five 2nm fabs online this year, two in Hsinchu and three in Kaohsiung, according to senior vice president Hou Yung-ching. Hou said first-year 2nm wafer output would be 45% higher than the first-year output of 3nm in 2023, while 2nm capacity is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 70% from 2026 to 2028.

Onto Innovation has raised its full-year 2026 advanced packaging growth outlook to at least 80% from more than 50% previously, citing strong demand for its Dragonfly G5 inspection platform. The company generated $343.1 million of quarterly revenue, up 35.3% year over year, while its inspection business, dominated by Dragonfly systems, grew approximately 30% sequentially on demand from 2.5D logic and HBM applications. Onto launched Dragonfly G5 in March 2026 and disclosed in April that the platform had been qualified for 2.5D AI packaging applications, with demand strongest among HBM manufacturers and AI-focused OSATs, including more than $200 million in Dragonfly orders from a single OSAT, most slated for 2027. Management said demand for the Dragonfly platform is expected to grow more than 50% in 2026 from 2025 and expects further growth in 2027 with no signs of customer overcapacity. Competitors are also benefiting from the same AI-driven spending: KLA now expects 2026 wafer fabrication equipment spending in the low-$150 billion range, up from $135-$140 billion, and Applied Materials expects advanced packaging revenue to grow more than 70% in 2026, up from its prior outlook of more than 50%.

Teradyne reported Q2 revenues of $1.33 billion, up 104% year on year, exceeding analysts' expectations by 9.3% and posting the biggest analyst estimate beat and highest guidance raise among the 14 semiconductor manufacturing stocks tracked. The company, a US-based supplier of automated test equipment for semiconductors, also beat analysts' EPS and operating income estimates, and its stock is up 20.8% since reporting, trading at $387.50. Across the group, revenues beat consensus estimates by 3.5% while next quarter's revenue guidance came in 6.5% above expectations, and share prices are up 7.2% on average since the latest earnings results. Kulicke and Soffa reported revenues of $330.4 million, up 123% year on year and 5.7% above expectations, the fastest revenue growth of the group, though its stock is down 3.2% since reporting at $90.86. KLA Corporation reported revenues of $3.66 billion, up 15.2% year on year and 1.3% above expectations, with its stock down 1.5% at $188.03, while Entegris reported revenues of $883.2 million, up 11.5% and 5.5% above expectations, with its stock up 19.8% at $149.97, and Amtech reported revenues of $22.38 million, up 14.5% and 4.1% above expectations, with its stock down 5.2% at $15.19.

Renishaw reported record full-year results for the year to June, with revenue up 14% to £815.8 million and adjusted pretax profit rising 32% to a record £168 million, sending its shares up around 3%. Adjusted operating profit climbed 36% to £152.9 million, lifting the margin to 18.7% from 15.7%, while adjusted earnings per share increased 30% to 179.5p and statutory pretax profit rose 27% to £150 million despite £18 million of redundancy and other one-off costs. Fourth-quarter revenue reached a record £244.2 million, up 28% year on year, and the order book continued to grow. Position Measurement was the standout division, with revenue jumping 26% to £260.9 million and adjusted operating profit up 53% to £71.5 million as its margin expanded to 27.4% from 22.5% on demand for optical encoders used in semiconductor manufacturing equipment, while Specialised Technologies grew revenue 43% to £107.5 million and swung from a £9.9 million adjusted operating loss to a £4.7 million profit. Industrial Metrology, still the largest part of the group, grew 4% as weakness in some traditional industrial markets offset demand for newer metrology systems and software. Renishaw increased its regular dividend by 5% to 82p per share and added a special 70p interim dividend, with cash and deposits rising to £291 million.

TSMC spent $15.59 billion on capital expenditure in its June 2026 quarter, its largest quarterly outlay in the past eight quarters and about 42% above the $10.98 billion spent in the prior quarter, as the company raised its 2026 capital budget for a third time this year, from $52 billion to $56 billion in January, to the high end of that range in April, and to $60 billion to $64 billion in July. On the Q2 2026 earnings call, CFO Wendell Huang guided third quarter gross margin down 170 basis points to 66%, citing 3 to 4 percentage points of dilution from the steep ramp of TSMC's 2 nanometer process, even as the June 2026 quarter's gross margin reached 67.72%, its highest in two years and consistent with the 67.7% figure cited by CEO C.C. Wei. Huang said TSMC generated about $24.5 billion in operating cash flow that quarter, enough to cover the $15.59 billion in CapEx and roughly $4.9 billion in dividends without new borrowing. TSMC is trading at 22.46 times forward normalized earnings, close to its 22.41 times two year average and well below the 29.65 times high in that range, after a mid September selloff tied to AI safety warnings from Anthropic's Dario Amodei and OpenAI's Sam Altman rather than anything specific to TSMC. Institutional 13F filings dated June 30, 2026 show a split Street, with Coatue raising its TSMC stake 7.6% to 9.3 million ADRs and Situational Awareness lifting its position to 2.6 million shares, while Lone Pine cut its stake 92.7%, SoftBank cut 71.5%, and Viking Global cut 29%.

KLA Corporation is benefiting from accelerating artificial intelligence infrastructure spending, which is driving higher investments in leading-edge foundry and logic technologies and boosting demand for its process-control solutions. In fiscal 2026, the Semiconductor Process Control segment's revenues increased 12% year over year, and overall fiscal 2026 revenues rose 12% year over year to $13.58 billion. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, management raised its calendar 2026 wafer-fabrication equipment market estimate, including advanced packaging, to the low-$150 billion range, up from its previous $140 billion-plus view and approximately $120 billion in calendar 2025. KLAC expects second-half 2026 revenues to be approximately 20% higher than the first half, aided by high-performance computing, high-bandwidth memory, increasing extreme ultraviolet adoption in DRAM and advanced packaging technologies such as hybrid bonding, and said backlog was expected to reach about $12.5 billion. The company faces intensifying competition from Applied Materials, which expects its process diagnostics and control business to grow more than 50% in calendar 2026, and from ASML, which expects advanced foundry and logic revenues to rise about 25% in 2026 and extreme ultraviolet revenues to increase roughly 45%.

Camtek, the dominant player in advanced packaging inspection and metrology with about 60% market share, is positioning itself for strong growth as AI chip demand expands. In its most recent quarter, roughly 80% of orders were for advanced packaging inspection, driven by memory chip manufacturers transitioning to HBM4 chips and expanding production amid the memory shortage. Camtek's Q2 revenue rose 8% year over year to a record $133 million, and third-quarter revenue is expected to rise about 20% sequentially to around $159 million, with second-half revenue projected to grow 25% over the first half. CEO Rafi Amit said on the Q2 earnings call that the company's leading position in advanced packaging is expected to drive approximately 45% growth in that business in the second half of 2026 compared with the first half. The broader advanced packaging inspection industry is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 11% over the next five years to $6.2 billion, up from $3.7 billion in 2026, and most orders coming in now will be executed in 2027. Camtek stock is up 25% year to date and 52% over the past 12 months, though it has fallen about 35% from its May peak, leaving its trailing P/E around 184 and its forward P/E at 27, with analysts holding a median price target of $190 per share.

Camtek is heading into its upcoming earnings report with analysts projecting earnings per share of US$0.98, up from the same quarter last year, after the stock closed its most recent session at US$138.59. The company has guided for Q3 2026 revenue of US$158 million to US$160 million, implying about 20 percent sequential growth, supported by large Hawk and Eagle G5 orders tied to AI and HBM applications. Camtek's narrative projects US$821.7 million in revenue and US$367.0 million in earnings by 2029, requiring 18.1 percent yearly revenue growth and roughly a US$319 million earnings increase from US$48.1 million today, with a fair value estimate of US$187.25, a 35 percent upside to the current price. The most cautious analysts assume revenue of about US$762 million and earnings near US$375 million by 2029, underscoring how sharply expectations can differ. The core risk remains that demand from a concentrated set of HPC and Asia based customers could prove more volatile than expected.

Bank of America raised its growth forecast for the US semiconductor industry, projecting an 18% compound annual growth rate between 2026 and 2030, up from its previous estimate of 14%. The bank attributed the revision primarily to higher expectations for memory chips and server-related components, and now forecasts the industry's total addressable market will reach $3.2 trillion by 2030, up from its previous estimate of $2.7 trillion. BofA said the industry took approximately 50 years to reach $1 trillion in sales but could double its current estimated market size of $1.7 trillion within four years, citing customer orders and capacity commitments across the data-centre and AI sectors. Separately, the bank raised its forecasts for the wafer fabrication equipment market, expecting spending to reach $156 billion in 2026, a 33% increase from the prior year, and $210 billion in 2027, representing projected annual growth of 34%, with the revisions reflecting higher expected spending on memory manufacturing equipment, particularly for DRAM production. BofA forecasts DRAM equipment spending of $61 billion in 2026 and $85 billion in 2027, and estimates the overall wafer fabrication equipment market could reach $360 billion by 2030, a compound annual growth rate of approximately 23% between 2026 and 2030.

Applied Materials reported quarterly revenues of $9.12 billion, up 24.8% year on year, exceeding analysts' expectations by 0.9%, as the 14 semiconductor manufacturing stocks tracked by the report delivered a very strong Q2 in which group revenues beat consensus estimates by 3.5% and next quarter's revenue guidance came in 6.5% above. President and CEO Gary Dickerson called it another record-breaking quarter with the highest sequential revenue growth in the company's history, citing significant improvement in inventory levels and next-quarter revenue guidance above analysts' expectations, though the stock is down 15.3% since reporting and trades at $453.00. Among peers, Kulicke and Soffa posted the group's fastest growth with revenues of $330.4 million, up 123% year on year and 5.7% above expectations, yet its stock is down 11.7% at $82.90, while KLA Corporation, the weakest of the group, reported revenues of $3.66 billion, up 15.2% and 1.3% above expectations, with its stock down 7.3% at $176.86. FormFactor reported revenues of $258.2 million, up 31.9% and 7.6% above expectations, with its stock up 34.7% at $112.38, and Lam Research reported revenues of $6.72 billion, up 30% year on year, meeting expectations, with its stock up 17.8% at $297.23.

Bank of America upgraded Renishaw from Underperform to Buy and lifted its price target to 5,400p from 2,779p, sending the precision-engineering group's shares up more than 5%. The broker argued the current demand cycle is considerably stronger than previously expected, particularly across semiconductor and electronics manufacturing equipment and aerospace and defense. The call follows increasingly strong trading updates from Renishaw itself: fourth-quarter revenue reached a record of approximately £243 million, up 27% year on year and 18% from the previous quarter, while full-year revenue is expected to reach around £815 million, representing growth of 14%. Adjusted operating profit for the year is expected to be approximately £152 million, and adjusted profit before tax should reach roughly £167 million, up 31% year on year. Bank of America raised its 2027 EBIT estimate by 22% to £181 million, about 11% above current consensus, and Renishaw's full-year results on September 23 will be the next major test of whether the roughly £815 million of revenue and £167 million of adjusted pretax profit are delivered as expected.

JPMorgan raised its forecasts for the wafer fabrication equipment market and named KLA as its top pick among U.S. chip-equipment makers in a note to clients on Friday. Analyst Mio Shikanai lifted the bank's WFE market growth estimates to 31% for 2026, taking the market to $163 billion, 38% for 2027 at $225 billion and 17% for 2028 at $263 billion, a 28% compound annual growth rate over 2025 to 2028. Shikanai said cloud service providers are accelerating their investments in response to further growth in AI-related demand, with spending by the top four U.S. players seen growing at a 58% annual rate through 2028. DRAM memory and TSMC drove the upgrade, with the analyst expecting memory supply to lag demand even in 2028 and TSMC's leading-edge capacity to stay above 100% utilization. Shikanai said she sees the most attractive risk/reward in KLA given its relative underperformance year to date, underappreciated exposure to foundry and logic-led WFE spending in 2027, and potential for upward revisions to consensus revenue estimates, noting KLA shares are up about 50% this year but have lagged peers Lam Research and Applied Materials, up roughly 85% and 82%, respectively.

Applied Materials CEO Gary Dickerson told David Faber at Goldman's Copia Conference that the company is approaching 40% growth this year, driven entirely by AI compute demand, and he expects strong growth in 2026, 2027 and beyond, backed by rolling eight-quarter customer forecasts and longer tool-shipment commitments. The August quarter delivered revenue of $9.12 billion, up 24.8% year over year, with non-GAAP EPS of $3.50, and guidance for the October quarter calls for revenue near $10.25 billion; CFO Brice Hill said customer visibility extends in some conversations to 2030 and the company is preparing to double its quarterly system output by 2028. Dickerson said DRAM revenue grew from 22% to 26% of semiconductor systems revenue, with DRAM including HBM packaging up 52% year over year to record levels, while advanced packaging is expected to grow more than 70% in calendar 2026. Peer results corroborate the order book: Lam Research reported June-quarter revenue of $6.72 billion, up 30.0% year over year, and raised its calendar 2026 WFE view to the low $150 billion range from $140 billion; KLA posted record revenue of $3.66 billion with remaining performance obligations around $12.5 billion; and ASML plans to add 30% to its 2026 low NA EUV capacity of around 65 for 2027, with another 30% under investigation for 2028. Applied trades at a trailing P/E of 41x and forward P/E of 26x at a current price of $468.85, up 188.38% over the past year but down 10.11% over the past month and below its 52-week high of $738.88, with the 200-day moving average at $407.06.

Global wafer-fabrication-equipment spending is projected to rise 16.9% to a record $135.2 billion in 2026, up from $115.7 billion in 2025, with memory equipment growing faster than the broader market. Within that total, 300mm DRAM equipment spending is projected to rise 29% to $37 billion and 300mm 3D NAND equipment spending is expected to increase 28% to $14 billion, while logic, foundry and other equipment spending remains the largest category at approximately $84.2 billion but grows just 10.6%. The combined $51 billion of DRAM and NAND equipment spending is being driven by Samsung Electronics, Micron Technology and SK hynix simultaneously expanding investment in advanced DRAM, high-bandwidth memory, NAND, cleanrooms and advanced packaging. Lam Research, the most direct beneficiary, reported record June-quarter revenue of $6.72 billion and fiscal 2026 revenue of approximately $23.23 billion, up from $18.44 billion in fiscal 2025, and recently raised its quarterly dividend 27% from $0.26 to $0.33 per share. KLA reported fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $3.66 billion, up approximately 15% year over year, with fiscal 2026 revenue of $13.58 billion and GAAP net income of $4.83 billion, while ASML reported second-quarter 2026 net sales of €9.3 billion, a 54% gross margin and net income of €2.9 billion, and raised its expected 2026 net sales range to between €43 billion and €45 billion. The principal industry risk remains eventual memory overinvestment, though current investment is concentrated on advanced products, cleanrooms and process migrations.

Qualcomm, Intel, Amkor, Nova, and FormFactor shares traded up in the afternoon session after Qualcomm announced a multi-generational product collaboration with Amazon Web Services to develop custom AI data center infrastructure, while ASML, TSMC, and Intel achieved key milestones in next-generation chip manufacturing. Qualcomm's partnership with AWS focuses on co-designing successive generations of custom AI chips for high-performance inference and data center workloads, aiming to strengthen AWS's internal hardware ecosystem, reduce operating costs, and improve energy efficiency. Simultaneously, ASML and TSMC announced a joint initiative to transition from traditional 6-inch photomasks to larger 12-inch formats, targeting a pilot line by 2031 and full production by 2033, which will expand the print field and reduce manufacturing costs. Additionally, Intel Foundry and ASML confirmed that Intel has processed over one million wafers on its Intel 18A node using High NA EUV equipment. These coordinated advancements boosted investor confidence in sub-2-nanometer chip designs and next-generation AI infrastructure. Among the stocks, Intel jumped 9.5%, Amkor and FormFactor each rose 6.3%, Nova gained 3.7%, and Qualcomm advanced 3.3%.

Spirox has launched the SP7000G High-Speed TGV Crack Inspection System, designed to support high-volume glass substrate inspection for next-generation AI and HPC packaging. The system can scan a full 510 mm by 515 mm glass substrate in under 20 minutes, detecting internal microcracks after metallization and ABF build-up processes. Spirox introduced the system at its Advanced Packaging Technology Forum, where experts from Corning and DNP discussed Glass Core and TGV technologies. The SP7000G complements Spirox's existing SP8000G, offering a comprehensive solution for non-destructive TGV inspection across R&D, quality control, and high-volume manufacturing.

Nova reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $255.0 million, up 8% sequentially and 16% year-over-year, with GAAP net income of $75 million and non-GAAP net income of $86.5 million. The company achieved record revenue in advanced logic devices and advanced packaging solutions, driven by industry shifts to Gate-All-Around architecture and capacity additions. For the third quarter, Nova guided revenue to $277–$287 million, with GAAP diluted EPS of $2.46–$2.61 and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $2.70–$2.85. However, gross margin slipped to 56.5% from 57.7% in the prior quarter and 57.8% a year ago, while operating expenses rose to $68.0 million. CEO Gaby Waisman cited broad-based demand and market share gains as drivers of increased visibility.

A new market analysis from ResearchAndMarkets.com forecasts the global semiconductor wafer inspection equipment market will grow from $3.68 billion in 2025 to $5.16 billion by 2030 and approximately $6.9 billion by 2035, driven by demand from AI, electric vehicles, and advanced packaging. The market, which grew at a CAGR of 8.1% since 2020, is expected to expand at 7% from 2025 to 2030 and 6% from 2030 to 2035. Optical inspection systems led the market in 2025 with a 57.2% share, while electron beam inspection systems are projected to grow fastest through 2030 at 8.4% CAGR. Among end users, integrated device manufacturers held the largest share at 48.7%, but foundries are expected to see the strongest growth at 9.1% CAGR. Asia-Pacific was the largest regional market in 2025, with North America and the Middle East forecast as the fastest-growing regions through 2030.

Semiconductor stocks surged in the afternoon session after Nvidia reported blowout quarterly earnings and issued an upbeat revenue forecast, easing investor fears of a slowdown in artificial intelligence infrastructure spending. Among the gainers, Amkor jumped 6.6%, Vishay Intertechnology rose 3.5%, Allegro MicroSystems climbed 3.3%, FormFactor and Intel each advanced 3.1%. Nvidia's strong second-quarter beats on revenue and profit, along with an upbeat third-quarter outlook, lifted peer chipmakers and hardware suppliers including Broadcom, Micron Technology, and Marvell Technology. CEO Jensen Huang confirmed on the earnings call that the AI infrastructure build-out is "at full steam," serving as a broad positive catalyst across the supply chain. Amkor, which is up 19.7% year-to-date, still trades 40.4% below its 52-week high of $86.23 from June 2026.

Hangzhou Semitronix Electronics Co., Ltd. disclosed its 2026 semi-annual report. In the first half of the year, it achieved operating revenue of 341 million yuan, up 38.68% year on year. Net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 34.7773 million yuan, up 121.73% year on year. Non-GAAP net profit attributable to the parent company was 5.0347 million yuan, a sharp increase of 572.41% year on year, turning from loss to profit. The earnings growth was mainly driven by the coordinated volume expansion of its EDA software and semiconductor testing equipment businesses, as well as rapid delivery of its order backlog. As of the end of the reporting period, the company's order backlog reached 955 million yuan, up 92.50% year on year. Cumulative shipments of testing equipment reached 96 units, up 104.26% year on year, including 93 units of WAT and WLR equipment and 3 units of WLBI wafer-level burn-in testing equipment. In the first half of the year, net cash flow from operating activities reached 105 million yuan, surging 848.56% year on year. The company invested 170 million yuan in research and development, with 656 R&D personnel accounting for 80.20% of total staff, and has obtained 299 authorized patents at home and abroad. The company cautioned that revenue is subject to seasonal fluctuation risks. From 2023 to 2025, second-half revenue accounted for 73.33%, 68.59%, and 66.54% of the full year respectively, with the fourth quarter being the peak period for revenue recognition.

Semitronix released its 2026 interim report, with first-half net profit attributable to the parent up 121.7% year on year to 34.78 million yuan. Operating revenue was 341 million yuan, up 38.7% year on year. Net profit attributable to the parent excluding non-recurring items swung to a profit of 5.03 million yuan from a loss of 1.07 million yuan in the same period last year. Net operating cash flow was 105 million yuan, up 848.6% year on year. Earnings per share were 0.1736 yuan. In the second quarter, operating revenue was 236 million yuan, up 31.3% year on year, and net profit attributable to the parent was 45.49 million yuan, up 54.7% year on year. As of the end of the second quarter, total assets were 3.706 billion yuan, down 0.4% from the end of the previous year, and net assets attributable to the parent were 3.141 billion yuan, down 1.4%. The company said the semiconductor industry is developing rapidly, with AI and high-performance computing driving demand growth in the integrated circuit market. The company has competitive advantages in yield improvement and electrical testing, and continues to expand its market share in EDA software, PDA software, and wafer-level electrical testing equipment.

Jingce Electronic has released its semi-annual report for 2026, reporting operating revenue of 1.812 billion yuan, up 31.19% year-on-year, and net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company of 75.0349 million yuan, up 171.21% year-on-year. The profit growth was mainly driven by scaled mass production of the company's semiconductor products, enhanced delivery capabilities, and continued growth in its display inspection business. The company plans not to distribute cash dividends, not to issue bonus shares, and not to convert capital reserves into share capital. It is worth noting that the company's net profit in the second quarter was 32 million yuan, compared with 43 million yuan in the first quarter, implying a quarter-on-quarter decline of 24% in second-quarter net profit.

KLA is benefiting from accelerating demand for advanced packaging driven by AI and high-performance computing, with the company expecting its advanced packaging process-control systems revenues to reach approximately $1.1 billion in calendar 2026, representing growth of more than 70% year over year. The company's broad portfolio, including wafer inspection and metrology systems and chemistry process-control systems, positions it to capture spending across multiple stages of advanced packaging, while HPC packaging and integration are also driving demand in its Specialty Process and PCB and Component Inspection businesses, with these combined products expected to grow more than 25% in calendar 2026. However, KLA faces tough competition from Onto Innovation and Applied Materials, with Onto raising its 2026 advanced packaging growth outlook to approximately 80% and securing more than $200 million of Dragonfly orders from a single OSAT, and Applied Materials expecting its process diagnostics and control business to grow more than 50% in 2026. KLA shares have jumped 50.9% year to date, outperforming the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector's return of 15.4%, but the stock is overvalued with a forward 12-month price/sales of 13.05X compared with the sector's 6.32X. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2027 earnings is pegged at $5.43 per share, up 7.1% over the past 30 days, suggesting 44.41% growth from fiscal 2026, and KLA currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Teradyne is benefiting from accelerating AI-driven data-center investments, which are expanding demand across semiconductor test, networking, storage, product test, and robotics, strengthening its prospects alongside Cisco Systems and Vertiv Holdings. More than 60% of Teradyne's second-quarter 2026 revenues were AI-driven, and the company expects third-quarter 2026 revenues between $1.20 billion and $1.30 billion. A key driver is the acceleration in semiconductor capital expenditures, with wafer fabrication equipment CapEx forecasted to approach $250 billion by the end of the decade, driving 5% to 10% annual growth in wafer production and 15% to 20% compound annual growth in total transistor production. Teradyne's memory business saw revenues exceed $200 million for the third consecutive quarter in the second quarter of 2026, driven by strong demand for HBM and DRAM and a revival in NAND testing. The company also expects the Co-Packaged Optics testing market to reach $300-$700 million by 2028, and its shares have surged 89.3% year-to-date, outperforming the Zacks Computer & Technology sector's 14.4% growth. Teradyne currently holds a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), with the consensus estimate for 2026 earnings at $9.10 per share, up 26.38% over the past 30 days.

XiDian Corp released its 2026 semi-annual report, with net cash flow from operating activities turning positive to 7.1252 million yuan, mainly due to increased orders driving higher advance payments. In April 2026, the company signed fixed asset purchase contracts with Zhaochi Semiconductor and Zhaochi Jingxian under Zhaochi Holdings, with a total tax-inclusive amount of 335 million yuan, accounting for 80.05% of audited operating revenue in 2025, marking a landmark breakthrough in the Mini and Micro LED sector. Wafer probe station business achieved revenue of 80.8896 million yuan, up 31.02% year on year, with a gross margin of 42.46%. Research and development expenses were 31.8418 million yuan, accounting for 25.16% of revenue. As of June 30, 2026, the company held 363 authorized patents and 112 software copyrights, ranking first in market share among domestic probe station manufacturers in mainland China.

Guinness Global Innovators Fund highlighted KLA Corporation as a notable contributor in its second-quarter 2026 investor letter. The fund holds three semiconductor equipment manufacturers, which were its top performers over the quarter: Applied Materials up 111.8% in USD, KLA up 105.2%, and Lam Research up 103.0%. KLA, the leader in process control and yield management, continues to play a critical role as semiconductor manufacturing becomes increasingly complex, with demand for its inspection and metrology tools structurally supported by the transition to advanced nodes, high-bandwidth memory and advanced packaging. The fund returned 13.8% in GBP for the quarter, compared with 13.0% for the MSCI World Index and 13.1% for the IA Global sector average.

Keysight Technologies reported fiscal third-quarter 2026 revenues of $1.85 billion, up 36% year over year, with non-GAAP earnings surging 79% to $3.07 per share. Orders rose to $2.09 billion from $1.34 billion a year earlier, marking the second consecutive quarter above $2 billion. The company cited accelerating investments in AI infrastructure, next-generation communications, semiconductors, and defense markets as key drivers. For the fiscal fourth quarter, Keysight projects revenues between $1.93 billion and $1.95 billion, implying approximately 37% year-over-year growth at the midpoint, and non-GAAP earnings between $3.34 and $3.40 per share. Management expects fiscal 2026 revenues and earnings to increase approximately 32% and 60%, respectively.

Simply Wall St has lifted its assessed fair value for Keysight Technologies from about US$383.08 to roughly US$415.08, an increase of around 8%, following updated modeling assumptions. The revision reflects a higher revenue growth assumption of about 16.54%, up from 12.63%, and a net profit margin assumption of roughly 26.44%, up from 21.28%, while the future P/E assumption fell to about 32.19x from 44.69x. Several Wall Street firms, including Morgan Stanley, UBS, JPMorgan, Baird, Barclays, Susquehanna and Citi, have raised price targets into a roughly US$400 to US$440 range, citing AI-driven test intensity, record orders and operating leverage. Keysight guided fourth fiscal quarter 2026 revenue to a range of US$1.93 billion to US$1.95 billion, with the midpoint implying about 37% year-over-year growth, supported by AI data center demand for its software and test tools. The company was also added to several Russell growth benchmarks, including the Russell 1000 Growth and Russell 3000 Growth indices, and introduced new products such as the APS-ONE-400 cybersecurity test platform and expanded Eggplant AI-driven test automation.

Keysight Technologies shares climbed 2.6% in pre-market trading after the electronic design and testing specialist delivered record fiscal third-quarter results that comfortably exceeded Wall Street expectations. Adjusted earnings per share reached $3.07 versus the analyst consensus of $2.48, while quarterly revenue came in at $1.85 billion against expectations of $1.75 billion. Orders surged 56% year-on-year to $2.09 billion, driven by demand for testing solutions linked to artificial intelligence infrastructure, with the Communications Solutions Group's commercial communications revenue jumping 56%. For the fiscal fourth quarter, management forecast revenue of between $1.93 billion and $1.95 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $3.34 to $3.40, both well above consensus estimates of $1.82 billion and $2.68 respectively. Operating margin expanded by more than 800 basis points and free cash flow reached $403 million, while Morgan Stanley holds a $400 price target on the stock.

AMEC plans to invest 3.5 billion yuan to build the second phase of its Lingang industrialization base, focusing on etching equipment, metrology and inspection equipment, and thin-film deposition equipment. The company's wholly owned subsidiary AMEC Lingang will invest in and construct the project in the Lingang Special Area, with a planned total investment of 3.5 billion yuan, including 1.7 billion yuan in fixed asset investment. After reaching full production, it is expected to achieve annual sales revenue of 3 billion yuan. On the same day, AMEC released its 2026 semi-annual report, achieving operating revenue of 6.691 billion yuan, up 34.89 percent year on year, and net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company of 2.825 billion yuan, up 300.22 percent year on year. MEMSensing plans to acquire a total of 54 percent equity in Beijing Putian Optoelectronics through equity transfer and capital increase, with a total transaction amount of 177 million yuan. National Silicon Industry Group posted a net loss of 965 million yuan in the first half of the year, compared with a loss of 367 million yuan in the same period last year. SJSemi reported net profit of 449 million yuan in the first half of the year, up 3.33 percent year on year.

Onto Innovation completed its approximately $720 million purchase of a 27% minority stake in Rigaku Holdings on August 10, 2026. The investment aims to accelerate joint development of next-generation X-ray process-control technology for semiconductor manufacturing. Management estimates the semiconductor X-ray technology market at roughly $1 billion and expects adoption to increase as 3D transistor and packaging structures become more complex. Onto ended the second quarter with $1.88 billion of cash and short-term investments, strengthened by a $1.5 billion zero-percent convertible-note offering due in 2031. The Rigaku stake will be accounted for under the fair value option, so strategic value depends on joint development, customer qualifications, and adoption rather than immediate consolidated revenue.

Chayanon Rakkanjanun, co-founder of Finnomena Group and CEO of Finnomena Funds, said technology stocks have not yet run their course, despite heavy volatility since the start of the year from four main factors: rapid changes in AI technology, capital rotation following technology, uncertainty from tensions in the Middle East, and signals from Kevin Warsh, chairman of the US Federal Reserve, that interest rates could rise, with US government bonds hitting their highest level in 25 years since the subprime crisis, pressuring tech stocks. Chayanon pointed to positive signals from South Korean chip exports by Samsung and SK Hynix, which grew more than 100 percent from May to July 2026, still-high demand for High Bandwidth Memory and DRAM, continuously rising GPU rental prices, and second-quarter 2026 results from hyperscalers including Google Cloud Platform, Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, and Meta Platforms that beat expectations, along with announced data center capital spending totaling 700 billion dollars this year and 1 trillion dollars next year. He recommended avoiding or investing only lightly in the Memory Chip group, choosing Micron, said NVIDIA has no competitor for four to five years, picked Google among the hyperscalers, and pointed to an advantage in Japanese stocks for AI inspection, while recommending the LHSUPERAI fund, which invests across the full supply chain.