TD Cowen Increases Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target to $315.00

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price target increased by investment analysts at TD Cowen from $260.00 to $315.00 in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock. TD Cowen’s target price suggests a potential upside of 17.54% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Daiwa Capital Markets reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $170.00 price target (down previously from $185.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday. Finally, Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.74.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $268.00 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $231.26 and its 200-day moving average is $195.71. Applied Materials has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $273.59. The company has a current ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $213.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.32 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,127,653.89. The trade was a 12.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 150.0% in the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Maseco LLP bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its position in Applied Materials by 435.0% in the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 214 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in Applied Materials by 5,325.0% during the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.