Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT)

The company supplies tools for deposition and etch, ion implantation and wafer inspection. Buyers are semiconductor manufacturers: TSMC, Samsung, Intel, memory makers. An order arrives when a customer decides to build or re-equip a fab, so the cycle here is longer and sharper than for chips themselves.

Service adds stability: the installed base needs maintenance, spare parts and upgrades, and that revenue recurs, unlike selling the machines. Its share has grown enough to smooth the troughs of the investment cycle.

The dominant external factor is export control. Shipments of advanced equipment to China are restricted by US policy, and China has historically been a large buyer, so policy moves the addressable market directly. The company pays a dividend and buys back stock actively.