Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Down 5.6% – Here’s What Happened

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price dropped 5.6% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $321.54 and last traded at $322.32. Approximately 9,609,673 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 23% from the average daily volume of 7,822,230 shares. The stock had previously closed at $341.34.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho upgraded AMAT to Outperform and raised its price target to $370, citing accelerating WFE (wafer fab equipment) spending as a multi‑year tailwind. Mizuho Upgrades Applied Materials (AMAT) to Outperform on Global WFE Tailwinds
• Positive Sentiment: Key analysts (including KeyBanc and others cited across outlets) have raised price targets (KeyBanc to $380) and highlighted AMAT’s diversified position in deposition/etch and benefits from increased chip manufacturing intensity. Mizuho upgrades Applied Materials to Outperform as WFE spending accelerates
• Positive Sentiment: Several buy‑side pieces (Seeking Alpha, analyst blogs) call AMAT an attractive buy into the upcoming Q1 report, pointing to semiconductor momentum and durable multi‑year tailwinds. Applied Materials: Attractive Buy Ahead Of The Q1 2026 Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity shows large institutional/speculative positioning (“whales”), which can amplify moves in either direction but doesn’t guarantee fundamental change. Traders should watch open interest and expiries. This Is What Whales Are Betting On Applied Materials
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry discussion is underway about AMAT’s ability to challenge ASML at the high end — a long‑term strategic theme that could support upside but is uncertain and execution‑dependent. Can AMAT Break ASML’s Monopoly?
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks highlights rising trade and cost pressures that could offset semiconductor momentum — a nearer‑term risk to margins and guidance that may be pressuring the stock today. Applied Materials leads Zacks’ latest Analyst Blog
• Negative Sentiment: Technical/valuation factors: AMAT has run sharply higher over the past year and now trades at an elevated multiple (PE and PEG above historical norms). Higher trading volume on the pullback suggests profit‑taking and short‑term selling pressure. (Background market data.)

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $285.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $273.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. 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 report on Friday, November 14th. DZ Bank upgraded Applied Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Susquehanna upgraded Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $400.00 in a report on Sunday, January 11th. Twenty-four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $298.14.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $279.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $226.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The company has a market cap of $255.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,127,653.89. This represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 value of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. IFG Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 1,008.1% in the 2nd quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 36,156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,619,000 after buying an additional 32,893 shares during the period. Grandfield & Dodd LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 6.9% during the third quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $55,180,000 after buying an additional 17,397 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 23.0% during the second quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 12,643 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 2,363 shares during the last quarter. Sienna Gestion raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 10.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 113,221 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $18,924,000 after acquiring an additional 10,468 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 31.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 145,277 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,601,000 after acquiring an additional 35,012 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

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.