Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Seaport Research Partners

Posted by Francis Steltz on May 6th, 2026

Seaport Research Partners upgraded shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Free Report) to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $370.86.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on AMAT

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $410.82 on Monday. Applied Materials has a twelve month low of $151.51 and a twelve month high of $420.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $369.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $308.46. The company has a market capitalization of $326.03 billion, a PE ratio of 42.05, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.Applied Materials’s revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 11.14 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.83%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total value of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,778,624.78. This trade represents a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Private Wealth Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 4.9% during the first quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 531 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $181,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. One Day In July LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.4% in the first quarter. One Day In July LLC now owns 1,089 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 2,082 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $712,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the first quarter. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Warther Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,908 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Materials this week:

Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $454 and kept an “overweight” rating, signaling more upside from current levels and likely supporting buying interest. Morgan Stanley raises AMAT price target to $454 (Benzinga)
Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials agreed to acquire NEXX (from ASMPT) to broaden its panel‑level advanced packaging tech — strengthens AMAT’s exposure to AI accelerator packaging, a high‑growth end market. Applied Materials Broadens Advanced Packaging Portfolio with Acquisition of NEXX (GlobeNewswire)
Positive Sentiment: Coverage and news pieces highlight AMAT’s strong history of earnings surprises and argue the company has the key ingredients to beat again — this raises the probability of another upside EPS surprise and helps near‑term sentiment. Will Applied Materials (AMAT) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report? (Yahoo)
Neutral Sentiment: Sector momentum: chip stocks rallied sharply in April, which benefits large equipment suppliers like AMAT via sentiment and multiple expansion — positive tailwind but indirect. Chip Stocks Soared 70%+ in April. Have They Gone Too Far? (247wallst)
Neutral Sentiment: Peer earnings beats (Advanced Energy, Lattice Semiconductor) show AI/data‑center demand lifting equipment and component suppliers — supportive context but not company‑specific. Advanced Energy Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates (Yahoo)
Neutral Sentiment: Another peer, Lattice, beat Q1 estimates; such results can validate demand trends AMAT operates in but don’t directly change AMAT fundamentals. Lattice Semiconductor Q1 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates (Yahoo)
Neutral Sentiment: An ACM Research article in your feed is company‑specific to ACMR (not AMAT) and discusses revenue growth vs. margin pressure — peripheral to AMAT but part of the broader equipment ecosystem newsflow. ACM Research to Report Q1 Earnings: What’s in Store for the Stock? (Yahoo)

Applied Materials Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Applied Materials, Inc is a U.S.-based supplier of equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductor chips, flat panel displays and other advanced materials. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, the company designs and sells capital equipment and related technologies that enable production of integrated circuits, display panels and materials used across the electronics supply chain.

Applied Materials’ offerings include process equipment and factory software that support critical steps in device fabrication, such as deposition, etch, implantation, inspection and metrology, as well as systems for packaging and advanced heterogeneous integration.