Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Jumps 2% – Should You Buy?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price shot up 2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The stock traded as high as $390.00 and last traded at $381.92. 5,521,233 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 30% from the average session volume of 7,860,765 shares. The stock had previously closed at $374.53.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI-driven equipment demand and growth in advanced packaging are potential longer-term supports for Applied Materials, according to a recent analysis. AMAT Shares Plunge 30% in a Month: Should You Buy, Sell or Hold?
• Positive Sentiment: Funds added to their AMAT positions on Nov. 2: ETFs bought a net $237 million, while Capital Group Dividend Value purchased $146.3 million. This buying may signal institutional confidence, though it predates the latest sell-off. ETFs Bought $237.0 Million of Applied Materials
• Neutral Sentiment: Next week’s earnings are expected to be a key test of whether strong chip-equipment guidance can hold up amid a more challenging investment backdrop; one report highlights a $10.25 billion revenue benchmark. Applied Materials Stocks Fall Before a $10.25 Billion Revenue Test
• Negative Sentiment: AMAT has declined amid a deepening chip-stock rout that has also hit Lam Research, KLA and Teradyne. Investors are concerned that data-center spending could slow, and Qualcomm’s weak guidance added to the sector’s worries. Chip Stock Rout Deepens

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $645.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Craig Hallum raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 14th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $650.00 to $590.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Thirty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $632.01.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $447.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $444.59. The stock has a market cap of $253.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The business’s revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total value of $394,806.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 3,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,732,245.36. This trade represents a 18.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $479.25, for a total transaction of $3,594,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,637,780.25. This represents a 5.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 9,225 shares of company stock worth $4,454,181 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its position in Applied Materials by 78.9% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 76,348 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,043,000 after buying an additional 33,668 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 3.2% during the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 14,632 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,483,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.8% in the third quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 3,983 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,037,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $789,000. Finally, Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 14.7% in the third quarter. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $570,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc is a technology company that supplies equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its products help customers fabricate the integrated circuits and other components used in computers, mobile devices, data centers, automobiles and a range of connected technologies.

The company’s offerings include systems for materials engineering, wafer fabrication, inspection and process control, along with equipment and services designed to improve manufacturing productivity and yield.