New York, February 13, 2026, 5:06 PM EST — After-hours
- KLA shares rose about 1% in after-hours trade as chip-equipment stocks tracked Applied Materials’ upbeat outlook
- KLA also disclosed a plan to invest up to $400 million in a Chennai R&D and innovation campus over 10 years
- U.S. markets reopen Tuesday after a Presidents Day holiday, with KLAC’s dividend date also in focus
KLA Corporation shares (KLAC.O) rose 0.9% to $1,464.13 in after-hours trading on Friday, after swinging between $1,437.65 and $1,493.48 during the session. About 1.0 million shares changed hands.
The drift higher matters because chip-tool stocks have been trading as a quick read on whether AI-linked demand is still pulling factory spending forward. KLA sells inspection and measurement tools — “process control” gear that helps chipmakers spot defects and improve yields.
Applied Materials set the tone, jumping 11% after it forecast second-quarter revenue and profit above analysts’ estimates and pointed to a tightening memory market. Chief Executive Gary Dickerson said the outlook was “fueled by the acceleration of industry investments in AI computing,” and Morningstar analyst William Kerwin said “Artificial intelligence infrastructure demand is immense.” (Reuters)
KLA, meanwhile, put out its own headline. The company said it signed a memorandum of understanding with the Tamil Nadu government to build a research and innovation campus in Chennai and expects to invest up to $400 million over 10 years; the plan includes a 12-acre site that could scale to about 1.5 million square feet and create up to 4,000 jobs. KLA India President Dominic David said “India has been a critical part of KLA’s global growth story for over two decades,” while state industries minister T.R.B. Rajaa said the plan “reinforces the state’s role in the global semiconductor value chain.” (ETTelecom.com)
That India move is a longer-dated bet on engineering and software capacity. Near-term, this stock still trades on capital spending: what chipmakers do next quarter, not what gets built over a decade.
Friday’s read-through was simple. If the biggest U.S. chip-tool maker is talking up demand tied to AI servers and tight memory, investors tend to pull the rest of the equipment group higher with it — KLA included.
KLA also sits in the same “tools” basket as peers like Applied Materials and Lam Research, so it can move on sector news even when there is nothing company-specific on the tape. It’s not always tidy.
But the cycle can turn fast. If memory pricing cools, AI data-center builds slip, or trade curbs widen, orders can slow and the market will price that in quickly.
The calendar adds friction: U.S. stock and bond markets are closed on Monday for Presidents Day, leaving a long weekend gap before the next regular session. (Investopedia)
When markets reopen on Tuesday, KLA also hits its next dividend marker. The company lists Feb. 17 as the ex-dividend and record date for its $1.90 quarterly cash dividend, payable March 3. (KLA Corporation)
Investors will be watching Tuesday’s open for follow-through in chip-equipment names after Applied Materials — and for whether any fresh analyst revisions spill into the group. For KLAC, the next test is whether the bid holds into Feb. 17.
