AMAT vs. ASX: Applied Materials vs. ASE Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX) both belong to the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry, though AMAT is classified under Semiconductor Materials & Equipment while ASX falls under Semiconductors.

Applied Materials (AMAT) trades as ordinary local shares, while ASE (ASX) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Company profile comparison for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Profile Item	AMAT	ASX
Name	Applied Materials Inc.	ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. ADR
Country/Region	United States	Taiwan
GICS Sector	Information Technology	Information Technology
GICS Industry Group	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment
GICS Industry	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment	Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment
GICS Sub-Industry	Semiconductor Materials & Equipment	Semiconductors
Market Capitalization	264.04 billion USD	69.83 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	October 2, 2000
Security Type	Common Stock	ADR

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AMAT

ASX

GSPC

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

Loading price history…

Trailing total returns for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…

Calendar-year total returns for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
Total Return (1Y)	62.12%	127.56%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	38.42%	67.56%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	19.86%	41.55%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AMAT

ASX

GSPC

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

Loading price history…

Distribution of monthly total returns for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	63.72%	62.95%
Beta (5Y)	1.68	1.83
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-55.80%	-40.64%
Avg. Volume (3M)	7.16M	7.76M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AMAT and ASX are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.91	1.96
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.35	2.77

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Applied Materials (AMAT) at 41.07% sits in the top ROE quartile, while ASE (ASX) at 19.90% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for AMAT.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

41.07%

Max: 52.82%
AMAT: 41.07%
Q3: 22.26%
Median: 10.58%
Q1: 1.29%
Min: -16.89%

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

19.90%

Max: 52.82%
Q3: 22.26%
ASX: 19.90%
Median: 10.58%
Q1: 1.29%
Min: -16.89%

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their ROE against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Applied Materials (AMAT) at 30.05% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of ASE (ASX) at 9.78%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

30.05%

Max: 63.80%
AMAT: 30.05%
Q3: 28.36%
Median: 11.44%
Q1: 0.90%
Min: -37.77%

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

9.78%

Max: 63.80%
Q3: 28.36%
Median: 11.44%
ASX: 9.78%
Q1: 0.90%
Min: -37.77%

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their net margin against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Applied Materials (AMAT) at 33.74% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of ASE (ASX) at 13.57%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

33.74%

Max: 58.66%
AMAT: 33.74%
Q3: 30.23%
Median: 15.91%
Q1: 7.54%
Min: -25.74%

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

13.57%

Max: 58.66%
Q3: 30.23%
Median: 15.91%
ASX: 13.57%
Q1: 7.54%
Min: -25.74%

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their operating margin against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
ROE (TTM)	41.07%	19.90%
ROA (TTM)	15.48%	5.36%
Net Margin (TTM)	30.05%	9.78%
Operating Margin (TTM)	33.74%	13.57%
Gross Margin (TTM)	49.40%	20.80%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Applied Materials (AMAT) at 4.39% and ASE (ASX) at 8.39% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Applied Materials (AMAT) at 0.58% and ASE (ASX) at 22.96% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
Revenue Growth (YoY)	4.39%	8.39%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	3.23%	-1.28%
EPS Growth (YoY)	0.58%	22.96%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	5.19%	-13.66%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Applied Materials (AMAT) at 2.42 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while ASE (ASX) at 1.16 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for ASX.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

2.42

Max: 10.33
Q3: 5.62
Median: 3.33
AMAT: 2.42
Q1: 2.35
Min: 1.03

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

1.16

Max: 10.33
Q3: 5.62
Median: 3.33
Q1: 2.35
ASX: 1.16
Min: 1.03

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their current ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Applied Materials (AMAT) at 0.29 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while ASE (ASX) at 0.87 uses more debt funding than most peers.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.29

Max: 1.46
Q3: 0.65
AMAT: 0.29
Median: 0.27
Q1: 0.04
Min: 0.00

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.87

Max: 1.46
ASX: 0.87
Q3: 0.65
Median: 0.27
Q1: 0.04
Min: 0.00

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.42	1.16
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.29	0.87
Net Debt / EBITDA	-0.19	1.85

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

ASE (ASX) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Applied Materials (AMAT) reports a yield of 0.62%, ranking against industry peers normally.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.62%

Max: 1.37%
Q3: 0.65%
AMAT: 0.62%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.00%

Max: 1.37%
Q3: 0.65%
ASX: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Applied Materials (AMAT) at 16.48% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while ASE (ASX) at 39.77% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

16.48%

Max: 49.64%
Q3: 21.71%
AMAT: 16.48%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

39.77%

Max: 49.64%
ASX: 39.77%
Q3: 21.71%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.62%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	16.48%	39.77%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Applied Materials (AMAT) at 28.71 and ASE (ASX) at 30.41 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

28.71

Max: 110.34
Q3: 66.81
Median: 37.02
AMAT: 28.71
Q1: 23.96
Min: 8.12

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

30.41

Max: 110.34
Q3: 66.81
Median: 37.02
ASX: 30.41
Q1: 23.96
Min: 8.12

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

ASE (ASX) at 0.09 sits in the cheaper P/S ratio quartile while Applied Materials (AMAT) at 8.56 prices around its industry’s middle — ASX costs less per dollar of sales, though read it alongside growth and margins.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

8.56

Max: 21.42
Q3: 12.27
AMAT: 8.56
Median: 5.76
Q1: 2.73
Min: 0.00

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

0.09

Max: 21.42
Q3: 12.27
Median: 5.76
Q1: 2.73
ASX: 0.09
Min: 0.00

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

ASE (ASX) at 5.34 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Applied Materials (AMAT) at 10.30 carries an above-peer premium to book — AMAT is pricier on assets.

AMAT

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

10.30

Max: 14.06
AMAT: 10.30
Q3: 7.44
Median: 4.29
Q1: 2.30
Min: 0.20

ASX

Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group

5.34

Max: 14.06
Q3: 7.44
ASX: 5.34
Median: 4.29
Q1: 2.30
Min: 0.20

Applied Materials (AMAT) vs. ASE (ASX): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Applied Materials (AMAT) and ASE (ASX)
Metric	AMAT	ASX
P/E Ratio (TTM)	28.71	30.41
P/S Ratio (TTM)	8.56	0.09
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	10.30	5.34
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.16%	-275.26%