KLA Corporation's 2027 outlook puts the wafer-equipment market above $200 billion, well beyond its mid-$150 billion estimate for 2026 and pointing to a larger market for chipmaking tools.
The market forecast is separate from KLA's own revenue guidance. The company expects $4.7 billion in revenue for its fiscal second quarter, with a range of $4.5 billion to $4.9 billion for the three months ending Dec. 31, 2026.
KLA announced the guidance Oct. 28 with results for its fiscal 2027 first quarter. Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 set a record at $4.136 billion, up 28.9% from $3.210 billion a year earlier. The company said revenue and both GAAP and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share exceeded their guidance midpoints. KLA's September-quarter results and revenue guidance include the full quarterly figures.
In discussing demand, KLA President and CEO Rick Wallace cited investment in AI infrastructure and changing chip design and production needs. He also pointed to advanced packaging, leading-edge foundry and logic designs, and more complex memory requirements.
Lam Research has separately projected wafer-fabrication equipment spending above $200 billion in 2027, following a mid-$150 billion estimate for 2026. Lam expects the strongest growth next year in DRAM, with leading-edge foundry logic and NAND also projected to expand. It cited clean-room availability and shortages of some components as possible constraints, according to its forecast and cited supply constraints.
KLA's outlook covers the wafer-equipment market, while Lam's forecast concerns wafer-fabrication equipment spending. KLA's revenue guidance covers the quarter ending Dec. 31, 2026.
