Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading 4.4% Higher – What’s Next?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s stock price traded up 4.4% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $339.16 and last traded at $338.94. 9,267,152 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 14% from the average session volume of 8,094,610 shares. The stock had previously closed at $324.74.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Partnership with Micron to co-develop AI‑focused memory technologies — boosts Applied’s addressable market for memory equipment and leverages its $5B EPIC Center R&D hub. Applied Materials and Micron Partner To Advance U.S. Innovation in Next-Generation AI Memory Solutions
• Positive Sentiment: Long‑term R&D collaboration with SK hynix to accelerate advanced DRAM and high‑bandwidth memory development — validates demand for Applied’s process, materials and 3D packaging tools critical to AI compute scaling. Applied Materials and SK Hynix partner for next-gen AI memory development
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary highlights AMAT as a winner in the AI trade despite broader sector and ETF weakness — supporting momentum flows into the stock. AMAT and Micron still winning in AI trade despite QQQ and sector weakness
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage update: Erste Group initiated AMAT with a Hold, which may temper upside expectations until more visible order cadence/revenue from these partnerships appears. Erste Group Initiated Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) With a Hold Rating – Here’s Why
• Neutral Sentiment: Management presented at Cantor conference (transcript available) — useful for modeling management’s cadence and margin outlook but not an immediate catalyst. Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) Presents at 2026 Cantor Global Technology & Industrial Growth Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term stock pullback/volatility: coverage and commentary point to recent profit‑taking and a short-term slide from recent highs despite strong free cash flow — a reminder of valuation sensitivity for a high‑growth cyclical. Applied Materials Q1 2026 Free Cash Flow Hit $1.04 Billion, So Why Is the Stock Sliding

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. KGI Securities upgraded shares of Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.5%

The stock has a market capitalization of $278.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $329.54 and its 200-day moving average is $259.38.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the sale, the director owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Warther Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,908 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,031 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $265,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC now owns 2,208 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $567,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,298 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, Family Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,227 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.