FY2025 EPS Estimate for Applied Materials Raised by Analyst

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) – Analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald increased their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for Applied Materials in a note issued to investors on Monday, May 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst C. Muse now anticipates that the manufacturing equipment provider will post earnings of $9.53 per share for the year, up from their previous estimate of $9.40. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has a “Overweight” rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for Applied Materials’ current full-year earnings is $9.38 per share.

AMAT has been the topic of several other research reports. B. Riley decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “mixed” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.48.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $165.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $149.84 and a 200-day moving average of $165.12. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $134.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.66, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.09 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials by 972.2% during the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 435.0% during the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 214 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

Applied Materials Company Profile

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.