Applied Materials Tumbles; WBD Edges Higher; Merck Nears Cidara Deal

On this episode of Stock Movers:
- Shares of Applied Materials (AMAT) tumbled in premarket trading after the company suffered a sales decline last quarter and predicted another drop in the current period, though the chip-equipment maker sees demand improving in the second half of 2026. Sales will be approximately $6.85 billion in fiscal first quarter, which runs through January, the company said in a statement Thursday. Though that was slightly higher than the $6.81 billion average estimate, it would represent a decline of more than 4% from the year-earlier period.
- Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shares edged higher in premarket trading following a Wall Street Journal report that Paramount, Comcast and Netflix are preparing bids for the media giant. WBD amended the contract of Chief Executive Officer David Zaslav to ensure his stock options remain eligible to vest even if the media company is sold. The change, announced in a regulatory filing Thursday, follows the company’s decision last month to consider strategic options including a possible sale.
- Shares of Merck (MRK) moved lower ahead of the US market open after word the company is closing in on a deal to acquire Cidara Therapeutics Inc., a biotech company developing a treatment for influenza, according to the Financial Times. The deal would value San Diego-based Cidara at a premium to its current valuation of $3.3 billion and could be announced as soon as Friday, the newspaper reported.

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