Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 2.2% After Analyst Upgrade

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) traded up 2.2% during trading on Wednesday after Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on the stock from $260.00 to $390.00. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the stock. Applied Materials traded as high as $328.69 and last traded at $325.24. 7,863,604 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 4% from the average session volume of 8,190,423 shares. The stock had previously closed at $318.23.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on AMAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. B. Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $385.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $286.89.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,127,653.89. This represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. The sale 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 shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst target increases from major firms signal upside expectations — Needham raised its target to $390 and KeyBanc raised its target to $380, citing AMAT’s positioning for memory/AI-related capacity growth and vertical scaling potential. Needham Increases AMAT Target to $390 KeyBanc Raises AMAT Target to $380
• Positive Sentiment: Display business rebound: Q4 display revenues rose ~68% driven by advanced systems, improved pricing and stronger OLED demand — a sign AMAT’s display segment may reaccelerate revenue and margins if demand for OLED and AR/VR tooling continues. Can AMAT Lead the Display Market With Advanced OLED and AR/VR Push?
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings date set — AMAT will report fiscal Q1 2026 results and host its earnings call on Feb. 12, 2026; that event is a near-term catalyst where management guidance and commentary on China exposure, memory demand and pricing will matter most. Applied Materials to Report Fiscal First Quarter 2026 Results on Feb. 12, 2026 Q1 2026 Earnings Call Details
• Neutral Sentiment: Relative sector performance pieces highlight AMAT vs. peers (ASML, Lam) and frame expectations — useful context for investors assessing valuation and relative upside but not an immediate driver. Are Computer and Technology Stocks Lagging Applied Materials (AMAT) This Year?
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue and China-market headwinds remain a drag — AMAT reported a ~3.5% revenue decline YoY in the last quarter and analysts point to China restrictions as a continuing risk to near-term top-line growth. That dynamic helps explain why some analysts still caution on downside despite upgrades. Which Semiconductor Equipment Stock Has More Upside in 2026?
• Negative Sentiment: Negative/sell viewpoints and insider selling are being highlighted by some outlets — a Yahoo piece recommends selling AMAT in favor of alternatives, and recent insider sales are noted in market summaries, both of which can add near-term selling pressure. 1 Reason to Sell AMAT and 1 Stock to Buy Instead Quiver Quant: Insider Activity & Institutional Moves (AMAT)

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,920,984 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,125,265,000 after buying an additional 391,540 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.0% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 21,026,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,836,807,000 after acquiring an additional 407,282 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 225.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,046,057,000 after acquiring an additional 10,305,182 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 72.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,483,183,000 after purchasing an additional 5,700,349 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Down 2.0%

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $268.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $221.47. The firm has a market cap of $252.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

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.