Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading 2.9% Higher – Should You Buy?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) shares traded up 2.9% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $578.14 and last traded at $570.50. Approximately 7,512,819 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 10% from the average daily volume of 8,318,023 shares. The stock had previously closed at $554.50.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials highlighted its advanced packaging opportunity, with management targeting more than 50% packaging revenue growth in 2026 as AI demand drives HBM, 3D chiplets and next-generation packaging adoption. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: AMAT was also named a Zacks Rank #1 “Strong Buy” momentum stock, reinforcing bullish sentiment around its earnings momentum and AI-related demand. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remained constructive, with Morgan Stanley reportedly raising its price target on Applied Materials to $647, suggesting Wall Street still sees upside despite recent volatility. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several market pieces framed AMAT as part of a broader memory-chip selloff and asked whether it is a buy after the drawdown, reflecting uncertainty rather than a clear company-specific catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: AMAT also saw a sharp one-day pullback amid an industry-wide chip and tech selloff tied to weaker sentiment after Samsung earnings and broader risk-off trading. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AMAT. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Barclays boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $569.65.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.9%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The company has a market capitalization of $452.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.57. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $506.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $396.31.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The company’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $735.22, for a total transaction of $14,704,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,599,843 shares in the company, valued at $1,176,236,570.46. This represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805 over the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,405,458,000 after buying an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 617.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after acquiring an additional 7,856,576 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its stake in Applied Materials by 25,824.4% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $86,610,000 after acquiring an additional 3,357,167 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.