SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The world's largest chip equipment maker Applied Materials Inc posted a quarterly loss as cost cuts failed to fully offset a steep drop in revenue.
The net loss of $255.4 million, or 19 cents a share, in its fiscal second quarter ended April 26, compared with a year-ago net profit of $302.5 million, or 22 cents a share.
Excluding certain items, but including stock-based compensation expenses, the loss was 12 cents a share compared with analysts' average forecast of a loss of 10 cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.
Revenue tumbled more than 50 percent to $1.02 billion, but was higher than the average Wall Street estimate of $905.3 million.
Shares in the Santa Clara, California-based company edged higher to $11.57 in after-hours trade on Tuesday, and are up more than 10 percent this year. The stock closed at $11.48 on Nasdaq earlier on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Gabriel Madway; Editing by Richard Chang)
