Applied Materials’ earnings beat expectations, but stock falls after report of criminal probe

Applied Materials Inc.’s stock dropped more than 7% in extended trading Thursday after a report that the chip maker is under a criminal investigation by the Justice Department for potential export violations.

Reuters reported Thursday that the company is being probed for possibly sending hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of equipment to Chinese chip maker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. through South Korea as a way to evade a ban on U.S. exports of advanced chip technology to China.

 “The…