Applied Materials beats Corning by 75 points in AI infrastructure race

The comparison highlights two distinct ways to profit from AI infrastructure. Corning provides the optical fiber and connectivity materials that data centers need to move data, while Applied Materials supplies the equipment that chipmakers use to build advanced chips. This difference explains the performance gap: AMAT's exposure aligns with broader chip demand, while Corning's opportunity is tied more narrowly to data center construction.

Financially, Applied Materials is larger and more profitable, with a market cap of roughly $366 billion versus Corning's $128 billion. However, Corning's valuation suggests the market has high expectations for its future growth. The article notes that while Corning trades at a lower valuation relative to sales and book value, investors pay a higher premium for its earnings.

Overall, the piece concludes that Applied Materials offers the stronger combination of financial performance, valuation, AI exposure, and Wall Street sentiment. Corning remains an intriguing play if data-center connectivity demand keeps accelerating, but the article's pick is clearly AMAT.