ASML lifts guidance

ASML raised its 2026 sales forecast on April 15, saying artificial intelligence demand is pushing chipmakers to buy more of its machines. (asml.com) The Dutch company now expects 2026 net sales of €36 billion to €40 billion, up from the €34 billion to €39 billion range it gave on January 29 with its fourth-quarter 2025 results. (asml.com, asml.com) ASML reported first-quarter 2026 net sales of €8.8 billion, gross margin of 53.0%, and net income of €2.8 billion. It said second-quarter sales should come in between €8.4 billion and €9.0 billion. (asml.com) ASML sells lithography tools, the machines that project circuit patterns onto silicon wafers so chipmakers can build more powerful processors. It is the only company that makes extreme ultraviolet, or EUV, systems at scale, the tools used for the most advanced chips. (asml.com, reuters.com) That position puts ASML near the front of the artificial intelligence buildout. Companies racing to add data-center capacity need more advanced processors, and those processors require the chipmaking tools ASML supplies. (reuters.com, cnbc.com) The company’s earlier 2026 outlook had already assumed a recovery after 2024 and 2025 swings in memory and logic spending. The higher range suggests customer orders have held up even as export controls and geopolitics remain a risk. (asml.com, asml.com) Chief Executive Officer Christophe Fouquet said the company’s 2026 guidance range “accommodates potential outcomes of ongoing discussions around export controls.” Reuters reported ASML shares still fell after the results as investors focused on tighter China restrictions. (asml.com, reuters.com) China has been a pressure point for ASML because the Netherlands has restricted exports of its most advanced tools under U.S.-led controls. CNBC reported the stock fell about 5% to 6% on April 15 despite the higher forecast, reflecting concern about how much China business could tighten further. (reuters.com, cnbc.com) ASML ended 2025 with €38.8 billion of backlog and sold 67 new lithography systems in the first quarter of 2026. For investors and chipmakers, the new forecast says the artificial intelligence spending wave is still flowing upstream to the companies that build the tools. (asml.com, asml.com)