Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

When I first discovered Applied Materials, I was thrilled with the opportunity this company presents. It has solid fundamentals and is an essential driver of the semiconductor industry that provides the equipment to make chips to many different, competing companies, as well as moving towards the future of 3D chips. While I initially was blown away by the opportunity, my excitement was tempered by the fact that while many of the large semiconductor firms use Applied Materials, it has major competitors. A Fool always has to be wary of the perfect story, and Applied Materials has a great one, especially with a rising dividend and management that has been with Applied for a few years now. However, I will be investing in AMAT because I believe it is a better value than Intel or other chip makers because regardless of who makes the chips (as long as they use Applied's equipment, which not all do), Applied Materials profits. But the fact that Qualcomm, for example, does not use Applied's equipment (to my knowledge) is a drawback, so this may be more of a PC focused investment.