Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-five analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty-seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $501.2581.

A number of analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Mizuho raised their price target on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Applied Materials from $415.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Seaport Research Partners started coverage on Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, May 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price target on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo upgraded Applied Materials to Buy, adding to a growing list of bullish analyst calls and reinforcing confidence in the company’s growth outlook.
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials unveiled two new chipmaking systems for next-generation AI chips, highlighting new product momentum in its core semiconductor equipment business and potential demand tied to AI infrastructure.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary and analyst notes continue to suggest AI-driven semiconductor spending could support Applied Materials’ premium valuation and future earnings growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares, a disclosure that may get attention but does not by itself signal a change in the company’s fundamentals.
• Negative Sentiment: Applied Materials fell alongside other chip names after a report that SK Hynix is slowing HBM expansion, which raised concerns about near-term AI-chip demand across the sector.
• Negative Sentiment: Some market coverage also flagged AMAT’s valuation as stretched after a strong rally, suggesting investors may be more sensitive to any slowdown in growth expectations.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total transaction of $14,398,392.09. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 146,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. The trade was a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total value of $42,587,906.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,695,164 shares in the company, valued at $1,006,503,625. This trade represents a 4.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $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 during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 8.5%

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $585.88 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $465.17 billion, a PE ratio of 55.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $459.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $370.55. Applied Materials has a 12-month low of $154.46 and a 12-month high of $641.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

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.