Brokers Issue Forecasts for AMAT FY2026 Earnings

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) – Research analysts at Erste Group Bank issued their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Applied Materials in a report issued on Tuesday, March 24th. Erste Group Bank analyst S. Lingnau anticipates that the manufacturing equipment provider will post earnings of $11.03 per share for the year. Erste Group Bank has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Applied Materials’ current full-year earnings is $9.38 per share. Erste Group Bank also issued estimates for Applied Materials’ FY2027 earnings at $13.96 EPS.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on AMAT. Summit Insights upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, KGI Securities upgraded shares of Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $337.17 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $267.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.51, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.65. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $345.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $395.95.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. The trade was a 8.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189 over the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in Applied Materials by 119.8% in 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 purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $1,869,170,000 after buying an additional 7,856,576 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 72.5% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,483,183,000 after buying an additional 5,700,349 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 worth $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Record DRAM tools, new 2nm GAA tool announcements, a 15% dividend increase and steps to strengthen Asian logistics support renewed optimism about AMAT’s AI/DRAM exposure and cash returns to shareholders. Applied Materials Is Up After Record DRAM Tools, Dividend Hike And AI Supply-Chain Push
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst research (Erste Group) is modeling materially higher EPS for FY2026–FY2027 versus consensus (Erste’s FY2027 $13.96 estimate vs. current consensus ~ $9.38), signaling some brokers expect stronger multi-year profitability. Erste Group EPS Estimates for AMAT
• Positive Sentiment: Research notes point to growing end markets—high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and advanced packaging for AI chips—that could accelerate AMAT revenue beyond cyclicality in legacy fabs. Can HBM and Packaging Demand Accelerate AMAT’s Revenue Growth?
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and positioning pieces comparing ASML and Applied highlight both stocks as strong buys but emphasize different moats; ASML retains a premium for EUV dominance while AMAT is seen as cheaper exposure to broad equipment demand. ASML vs. Applied Materials: Which Chip Equipment Stock Offers Better Value in 2026?
• Neutral Sentiment: A MarketBeat piece flags that tech earnings growth hasn’t fully translated into ETF/stock price gains, suggesting broader market flow dynamics (not company fundamentals) may be capping AMAT’s rally. As Tech Earnings Grow, This ETF Still Hasn’t Caught Up (AMAT)
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst and media comparisons are elevating ACM Research (ACMR) as a better pure-play WFE/AI equipment buy, which can divert investor dollars away from AMAT in the near term. AMAT vs. ACMR: Which WFE Stock is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Several articles spotlight ACMR’s momentum and niche wins in wafer-cleaning and AI-driven segments, amplifying competitive fear and rotation risk for AMAT. This AI Semi Equipment Maker Has Been Quietly Chewing Up the Competition
• Negative Sentiment: Broad-sector weakness hit semiconductor-equipment names in a recent selloff (Teradyne, Intel, KLA, Semtech cited alongside AMAT), pressuring the stock independent of AMAT-specific fundamentals. Teradyne, Applied Materials, Intel, KLA and Semtech Shares Plummet

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.