** Shares of Applied Materials AMAT.O are up 0.7% in afternoon trading Thurs, with the semiconductor equipment maker seen reporting a rise in qtrly rev in its results due after the closing bell

** The co is expected to report Q2 rev of $7.127 bln, up from $6.646 bln in the yr-ago period, while it is expected to report earnings of $2.31/shr vs $2.09 a yr ago, according to LSEG

** The co has beaten analyst earnings expectations in all of the past eight reporting periods, per LSEG

** Analyst recommendations include 27 "strong buy" or "buy" ratings, seven "hold" ratings and one "sell" rating

** The median 12-mo price target for AMAT is $202.50​; the stock was last at $175.34

** AMAT is seen benefitting from demand for chipmaking equipment, but investors will be anxious to hear any comments from AMAT on the Trump administration's tariff war and its impact on semiconductor equipment makers

** Including the session move, AMAT is up about 8% YTD compared with a roughly 1% decline in the Nasdaq composite .IXIC in that period

(By Caroline Valetkevitch)

((caroline.valetkevitch@thomsonreuters.com))