Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-five analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $378.6552.
A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $485.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on AMAT
Insider Activity at Applied Materials
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Grandfield & Dodd LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $55,180,000 after purchasing an additional 17,397 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Applied Materials by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,101,772 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $635,057,000 after purchasing an additional 145,050 shares during the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan raised its position in Applied Materials by 82.2% in the 3rd quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 26,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,512,000 after purchasing an additional 12,132 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in Applied Materials by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 96,712 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,801,000 after purchasing an additional 17,288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $1,531,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.
Applied Materials Price Performance
Shares of AMAT opened at $443.62 on Tuesday. Applied Materials has a 1-year low of $153.47 and a 1-year high of $448.45. The stock has a market cap of $352.06 billion, a PE ratio of 45.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.66. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $373.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $314.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94.
Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.38 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast 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 represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.83%.
Applied Materials News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Materials this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target on Applied Materials from $500 to $550 and reiterated an overweight rating, signaling higher expectations for the stock ahead of earnings.
- Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials announced a new partnership with TSMC at its EPIC Center to accelerate AI-related semiconductor scaling, which could strengthen its long-term growth story and reinforce demand for its advanced manufacturing tools. Applied Materials and TSMC Partner at the EPIC Center to Accelerate AI Scaling
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts and preview articles highlighted AI-driven demand, high-bandwidth memory traction, and advanced packaging momentum as supportive themes heading into Applied Materials’ Q2 earnings, suggesting investors are anticipating solid results. AMAT to Post Q2 Earnings: Time to Buy, Sell or Hold the Stock?
- Neutral Sentiment: The stock is also benefiting from a generally positive market backdrop, with equities and chip stocks firming ahead of key inflation data and earnings releases, including Applied Materials’ report. Inflation Readings, Cisco and AMAT Earnings, and More to Watch This Week
- Neutral Sentiment: Reports of a short-interest increase appear inconclusive because the reported short interest and change both show zero/NaN values, so this does not provide a meaningful bearish signal.
About Applied Materials
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.
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