Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading Down 5.6% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) were down 5.6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $348.59 and last traded at $351.32. Approximately 7,780,828 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 6% from the average daily volume of 8,237,520 shares. The stock had previously closed at $372.18.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.71. The business’s 50-day moving average is $319.57 and its 200-day moving average is $251.67. The company has a market capitalization of $278.78 billion, a PE ratio of 35.95, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.65.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its 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 the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm 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. On average, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.83%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 150.0% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Company Profile

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.