Cisco sales jump 24%, Applied Materials 53% as AI demand holds
Cisco and Applied Materials both posted record quarters Thursday and raised their outlooks on demand for AI data centers and chipmaking tools, a day Nvidia shares fell more than 4% after CEO Jensen Huang's exit. Cisco lifted its full-year sales forecast to as much as $75.8 billion.
AI-assisted · US Brief desk · Sources listed below
What happened
Two big suppliers to AI data centers reported record results after the bell Thursday and raised their outlooks. Networking-gear maker Cisco said revenue rose 24% to $18.5 billion in its fiscal first quarter. Chip-equipment maker Applied Materials said revenue rose 53% to $10.41 billion in its fiscal fourth quarter.
Why it matters
The reports landed as investors weighed what Jensen Huang's sudden exit means for Nvidia and the AI trade. Nvidia fell more than 4% Thursday after paring deeper losses, Investing.com reported, and the S&P 500 slipped 0.35% to 7,592.40, Xinhua reported. Two key suppliers saying demand is still rising gives a read on spending beyond any one company.
More context
Cisco's numbers: Adjusted earnings were $1.40 a share, up 40%. Cisco raised its fiscal 2027 sales forecast to $74.8 billion to $75.8 billion, from $72.2 billion to $73.4 billion before, Reuters reported. It now expects $9 billion in AI infrastructure revenue from big cloud companies this fiscal year, more than double last year. One soft spot: orders grew 21% from a year earlier, down from 35% the prior quarter, Investing.com reported.
Applied Materials' numbers: Adjusted earnings were $4.16 a share, up 92%. Its main chip-equipment unit brought in $8 billion, up about 64%. The company forecast first-quarter revenue of about $11.10 billion, give or take $500 million, above the $10.89 billion analysts expected, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters. China was about 25% of quarterly revenue. "AI continues to fuel strong incremental demand for semiconductors," CEO Gary Dickerson said.
Market reaction: Shares of both companies dipped slightly in after-hours trading, Investing.com reported. Early Friday, S&P 500 futures were up about 0.1% and Nasdaq 100 futures were flat. Investors are also waiting on Friday's producer price index, a measure of wholesale inflation.
What would change the story: Nvidia's own quarterly report, due next week, will show whether AI chip demand holds up under interim CEO Colette Kress. A further slowdown in Cisco's order growth would also test the view that AI networking spending is still accelerating.
5 listed sources
- Cisco, Cisco Reports First Quarter Earnings, Nov. 12, 2026
- Applied Materials, Applied Materials Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2026 Results, Nov. 12, 2026
- Reuters via Investing.com, Cisco raises annual revenue forecast on strong AI networking demand, Nov. 12, 2026
- Investing.com (Scott Kanowsky), Huang ouster fallout; Cisco, Applied Materials outlooks - what's moving markets, Nov. 13, 2026
- Xinhua, U.S. stocks close lower, Nov. 13, 2026
References listed by US Brief; a source count is not a verification score.
Editorial sourcing notes
Company results are from Cisco's and Applied Materials' Nov. 12 releases; "non-GAAP" figures exclude some costs and are the company-adjusted numbers analysts usually compare. Analyst expectations are LSEG data cited by Reuters. Photos are file images, not from this week.
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