Analysts Set Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) PT at $363.46

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-four brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $363.4643.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AMAT. Mizuho raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $349.47 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $337.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $266.38. Applied Materials has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $395.95. The firm has a market cap of $277.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

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

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied approved a 15% increase in its quarterly dividend (now $0.53/share), extending nine consecutive years of dividend growth — a shareholder‑friendly move that signals management confidence in the AI/memory and logic tool cycle. Applied Materials Lifts Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Applied announced a collaboration with Synopsys and NVIDIA to speed quantum chemistry/materials simulations for semiconductor R&D (up to ~30x faster), which can shorten development cycles for advanced materials used in next‑gen chips — reinforcing AMAT’s software+equipment value proposition to chipmakers investing for AI. Applied Materials Ties Quantum Simulations
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish writeups and portfolio moves (Seeking Alpha features, InvestorPlace thematic piece on AI bottlenecks, and coverage noting interest from investors like Ken Fisher) amplify positive sentiment that AMAT will benefit from increased capex in AI chips and memory. Applied Materials: The AI Gold Rush Everyone Is Missing
• Positive Sentiment: Industry news: Belgium’s imec secured a rare ASML High‑NA EUV tool to develop next‑gen chips. While this is an ASML story, it underscores accelerating investment in advanced node tooling and materials — a demand tailwind for semiconductor equipment suppliers like AMAT. Belgium’s imec secures rare ASML High NA EUV tool
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent quarterly results beat EPS and revenue estimates but showed slight year‑over‑year revenue decline; management set Q2 guidance of $2.44–$2.84. These keep the fundamental story intact but don’t eliminate cyclical risk. MarketBeat AMAT summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest notices in recent filings show 0 shares / 0 days-to-cover — likely a data or reporting anomaly rather than meaningful short activity; treat these figures with caution. (Data entries dated March 17–18.)
• Negative Sentiment: The stock has posted a very strong run (reported ~86% in six months), which raises the risk of near‑term profit taking and increases sensitivity to any execution/guidance disappointments or macro slowdowns given a relatively elevated P/E. 3 Reasons Investors Watch Applied Materials

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the business’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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,405,458,000 after acquiring an additional 17,829,377 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 617.2% during the 3rd 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 valued at $1,869,170,000 after purchasing an additional 7,856,576 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,409,320,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in Applied Materials by 72.5% in 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.