Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Price Up 2.4% After Analyst Upgrade

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price shot up 2.4% during mid-day trading on Friday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $530.00 to $650.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Applied Materials traded as high as $609.22 and last traded at $602.50. 6,224,273 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 25% from the average session volume of 8,348,986 shares. The stock had previously closed at $588.66.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on AMAT. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $740.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Zacks Research upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One research 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $589.48.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. The trade was a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total transaction of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 356,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. This trade represents a 12.30% 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 worth $169,654,805 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta Platforms’ reported plan to manufacture its own AI chip has lifted semiconductor equipment names like Applied Materials, as investors see more demand for wafer fabrication tools and AI infrastructure. Applied Materials, KLA, Lam Research Take Off on Meta’s Chip Plans
• Positive Sentiment: CEO Gary Dickerson said chipmakers have “tremendous visibility” into demand and that AI investment could run longer than expected, reinforcing the view that Applied Materials has a multi-year growth runway. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Jumps after CEO Says AI Chip Demand Has Years to Run
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel raised its price target on Applied Materials to $650 from $530 and Needham lifted its target to $740 from $530, both with buy ratings, signaling stronger confidence in earnings and valuation. Applied Materials price target raised by Stifel / Needham
• Positive Sentiment: Broader chip-sector strength also helped, with semiconductor stocks rallying as investors rotated back into AI-linked names and equipment makers. US stocks end higher; chip surge offsets Iran worries
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials was removed from several Russell value indices in late June, which may affect index-driven ownership and how some investors classify the stock, but it is not a direct operating setback. How Investors Are Reacting To Applied Materials (AMAT) Being Dropped From Key Russell Value Indices

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $478.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.57, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $513.50 and its 200 day moving average is $400.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

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.