Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Gross Profit Margin

The gross profit margin exhibited an overall upward trend from 44.96% to 48.67% over the analyzed period. Initial increases were steady, peaking around early 2025. There was a slight dip around late 2021 to early 2023, but the margin recovered and rose consistently in the latter periods, indicating improving production efficiency or favorable cost management.

Operating Profit Margin

Operating profit margin showed a general increase from 25.3% to a range between 29% and 31% across the periods. The margin peaked around early 2022 and remained relatively stable with minor fluctuations thereafter. Despite small decreases near the end of 2024 and early 2025, the operating margin remained significantly higher than the initial value, reflecting sustained operational profitability and control over operating expenses.

Net Profit Margin

The net profit margin increased from 21.19% to a maximum of approximately 27.74% by mid-2024, demonstrating enhanced overall profitability. However, from late 2024 onwards, a slight decline was observed, dropping to around 24.67% by early 2025. This pattern suggests that while net income improvements were substantial initially, some pressure on bottom-line performance emerged in the most recent periods.

Return on Equity (ROE)

Return on equity experienced strong growth initially, rising from 33.62% to a high of 58.35% around mid-2022. After this peak, the ROE consistently declined to about 34.28% by early 2025. Despite the downward movement, the ending figure remains close to the initial level, indicating that shareholder returns were highly favorable during the middle periods but have normalized in recent quarters.

Return on Assets (ROA)

Return on assets rose significantly from 16.55% to a peak of 26.54% midway through the timeline. Following this, there was a gradual decline to approximately 19.28% by early 2025. This trend suggests that asset utilization efficiency improved substantially until mid-period but faced diminishing returns subsequently, possibly due to increased asset base or reduced profitability per asset.

The financial data reveals several noteworthy trends in the company's quarterly performance over the observed periods.

Net Revenue

The net revenue demonstrates a general upward trajectory from the initial quarters, starting at 5,162 million USD and reaching a peak of 7,302 million USD by the third quarter of 2025. There are occasional minor declines or plateaus, such as slight dips observed around early and mid-2023 as well as the final quarter of 2025, indicating some variability possibly due to seasonal factors or market conditions. The overall growth suggests steady demand and expansion over time.

Gross Profit

Gross profit follows a broadly similar upward trend, increasing from 2,349 million USD in the first quarter of 2021 to 3,562 million USD by mid-2025. There are fluctuations where gross profit dips slightly or stagnates briefly, notably in mid-2023 and the last quarter reported in 2025. Despite these variations, gross profit grows consistently, indicating effective cost control and revenue generation.

Gross Profit Margin

The gross profit margin shows a consistent improving pattern, rising from approximately 45.0% in early 2021 to nearly 48.7% by late 2025. This steady increase in margin highlights an enhancement in operational efficiency or product mix, enabling the company to retain a larger portion of revenue as profit over time. Margins fluctuated marginally quarter-to-quarter but the overall positive slope demonstrates strengthening profitability.

In summary, the company exhibits a strong financial performance manifested through rising revenues and gross profits accompanied by improving profit margins. The trends suggest enhanced operational efficiency and successful scaling efforts, although minor quarterly fluctuations point to some short-term challenges or market influences. Management might consider focusing on stabilizing these variations to sustain and further improve profitability.

The financial data over the reported quarters indicate several notable trends and fluctuations in key performance metrics, including income from operations, net revenue, and operating profit margin.

Income from operations

The income from operations displayed an overall upward trend from early 2021 through early 2025, with values rising from $1,283 million in January 2021 to a peak of $2,233 million in July 2025. However, there are periods of volatility, notably a decline in the last quarter of 2025, dropping to $1,712 million. Throughout the years, the income experiences some fluctuations, with intermittent decreases such as between January 2024 and October 2025 before the sharp decline at the end.

Net revenue

Net revenue steadily increased from $5,162 million in January 2021 to peak levels above $7,300 million by mid-2025. While growth is generally consistent, certain quarters show minor declines or corrections, such as the decrease in the last quarter of 2025 to $6,800 million, indicating possible market or operational pressures. The data reflects a pattern of strong revenue generation with occasional softness towards the recent period.

Operating profit margin

The operating profit margin exhibits a gradual improvement over the timeframe, starting at 25.3% in early 2021 and reaching levels surpassing 30% by mid-2025. The margin increases steadily and remains relatively stable around 28.5% to 31.8% through most quarters, showing efficiency gains and solid cost management relative to revenue growth. The margin temporarily peaks in May 2022 at 31.8% and maintains above 29% thereafter, suggesting sustained operational profitability. Despite minor oscillations, the margin remains robust without drastic declines.

In summary, the data reflects a generally positive trajectory in both income from operations and net revenue, with operating margins improving and stabilizing at a high level. The observed volatility in the latter quarters of 2025 signals the need for continued monitoring to understand potential underlying causes. Overall, the company appears to maintain strong financial performance with growth in profitability and revenue, albeit with some recent softness that may warrant further analysis.

Net Income Trends

Net income showed a general upward trajectory from early 2021 through 2024, starting at 1130 million US dollars in January 2021 and reaching above 2000 million US dollars by late 2023. This indicates strong earnings growth over this period. However, fluctuations occur within this pattern, most notably a decline to 1185 million US dollars in early 2025, followed by a recovery to 1897 million US dollars by the end of the same year. These variations suggest some volatility in profitability towards the more recent quarters.

Net Revenue Patterns

Net revenue exhibited steady growth from 5162 million US dollars in early 2021 to a peak around 7300 million US dollars in late 2024. The trend reflects consistent top-line expansion over nearly four years. Despite this overall growth, minor downturns can be observed intermittently, such as a drop from 7166 million in January 2025 to 6800 million in October 2025. These small decreases bring attention to potential challenges in sustaining revenue momentum consistently quarter over quarter.

Net Profit Margin Developments

The net profit margin showed improvement from 21.19% in early 2021 to a peak exceeding 27% multiple times between 2022 and 2024, indicating enhanced profitability relative to revenues. Margins slightly contracted in some quarters, notably dropping to approximately 22.95% in early 2025, which corresponds with lower net income during the same period. Margins then show signs of recovery, increasing back near 24-25% towards late 2025. Overall, the profit margin displays strong profitability with some recent pressure.

Integrated Insights

The data indicates that while the company has experienced solid growth in revenues and net income over the analyzed period, there are emerging signs of volatility, especially in the year 2025. The profitability margins largely remained robust, suggesting effective cost management, but the recent margin compression signals potential operational or market challenges. The concurrent fluctuation in net income and revenue toward the end of the dataset emphasizes the need for close monitoring of financial performance and factors influencing these variances.

The financial performance and position demonstrate notable dynamics over the observed quarters. Net income exhibits fluctuations with an overall upward tendency, peaking at several points but also showing periods of decline. Specifically, net income rose from an initial value of 1,130 million US dollars to reach a high of 2,019 million US dollars in early 2024 before experiencing some declines and recoveries afterward. By the last recorded quarter, net income stands at 1,897 million US dollars, reflecting variability but sustained profitability across the periods.

Stockholders’ equity displays a steady and consistent increase throughout the timeline. Beginning at 11,473 million US dollars, it grows progressively to surpass 20,000 million US dollars by the end of the period. This incremental rise suggests effective equity management and possibly retained earnings accumulation, contributing to enhanced financial stability and shareholder value accumulation.

Return on Equity (ROE) demonstrates an initial rising trend, advancing from 33.62% up to a peak of 58.35%, indicating heightened efficiency in generating profits from equity capital during the early to mid-periods. However, following this peak, ROE gradually declines to around 34.28% by the last quarter despite relatively stable or increasing net income and equity. This reduction in ROE may suggest that equity growth outpaced net income growth in later periods, resulting in diminished relative profitability or potential changes in operational efficiency.

Net Income

General upward trend with fluctuations; peaked around early 2024; variability observed in later periods.

Stockholders’ Equity

Consistent growth across all quarters; nearly doubled over the observed time frame.

Return on Equity (ROE)

Increased sharply initially, reaching above 50%; subsequently declined gradually to the mid-30s percentage range.

In summary, the data reflects robust growth in stockholders’ equity accompanied by a net income pattern that, while variable, remains generally positive. The ROE trend suggests that the company initially improved its profitability relative to equity but faced decreasing efficiency in this metric later on, highlighting areas for potential strategic focus on maintaining strong returns as equity expands.

Net Income Trends

The net income shows fluctuations over the observed periods. Starting from 1130 million USD, it generally increased reaching a peak of 2019 million USD in early 2024. Following this peak, the net income experiences some variability, with a noticeable dip to 1185 million USD in early 2025, before rising again to 1897 million USD by late 2025. This indicates periods of both growth and contraction in profitability across the quarters.

Total Assets Trends

The total assets exhibit a consistent upward trajectory throughout the periods. The assets increased steadily from 23,305 million USD to 36,299 million USD by the end of the timeline. This steady growth in total assets suggests ongoing investments and expansion in the company's asset base over time.

Return on Assets (ROA) Trends

Return on Assets demonstrates a generally high level of efficiency in generating profit from the asset base, with values starting at 16.55% and climbing to a peak of 26.54% around mid-2022. After the peak, ROA shows a gradual decline, stabilizing around the 19-22% range through the later periods. Despite this decline, the ROA remains relatively strong, indicating sustained profitability relative to assets.

Overall Insights

The company has shown growth in its asset base accompanied by fluctuating but generally strong net income performance. The efficiency of asset utilization, while peaking mid-period, has slightly decreased but remains robust. The variations in net income, despite asset growth, indicate possible impacts from market conditions or operational factors affecting profitability. The decline in ROA after the peak suggests that the increase in assets has not proportionally translated into higher net income during the later periods.