Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Rating Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Applied Materials from “Hold” to “Buy.” Broader analyst sentiment is also positive, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $658.45.
• Applied Materials reported a strong quarter, posting $3.50 in EPS and $9.12 billion in revenue, surpassing estimates and delivering 24.8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The stock opened at $485, while insiders sold approximately $59.6 million worth of shares over the past 90 days, even as institutional investors owned 80.56% of the company.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $675.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $650.00 to $590.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $658.45.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.3%

Applied Materials stock opened at $485.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.42. Applied Materials has a one year low of $197.39 and a one year high of $739.67. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $488.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $469.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $384.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.60.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials's revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Applied Materials will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total value of $465,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,877,960. The trade was a 3.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $479.25, for a total value of $3,594,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,613 shares in the company, valued at $61,637,780.25. This represents a 5.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 86,821 shares of company stock worth $59,609,471. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Applied Materials by 10.5% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 215,839 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $156,051,000 after acquiring an additional 20,447 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,068,335 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $715,458,000 after acquiring an additional 70,642 shares in the last quarter. Andra AP fonden increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 34.4% during the 2nd quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 126,229 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $91,264,000 after acquiring an additional 32,340 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 85.4% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 69,525,842 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $50,267,184,000 after acquiring an additional 32,018,892 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Twin Peaks Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $12,291,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is committing approximately $5 billion to India over the next decade, including a 140-acre semiconductor research park. The investment could expand the company’s regional footprint, strengthen customer relationships and position it to benefit from India’s developing chip ecosystem. Applied Materials AMAT What Is Behind The Fresh Attention Today?
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials, KLA and GlobalFoundries are expanding their semiconductor ties in Singapore. The initiative signals continued investment in regional manufacturing and research capacity, potentially supporting future equipment demand for Applied Materials. Applied Materials, KLA, GlobalFoundries expand Singapore semiconductor ties
• Positive Sentiment: Investor commentary continues to highlight Applied Materials’ exposure to surging AI-related semiconductor demand. The company’s latest reported quarter showed revenue growth of 24.8% year over year, with earnings and sales exceeding consensus estimates, reinforcing the growth narrative. ASML vs. Applied Materials: Which AI Chip-Equipment Stock Is the Better Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparisons with ASML frame AMAT as a diversified AI chip-equipment investment trading at a lower forward earnings multiple, but the discussion is valuation-focused rather than a new company-specific catalyst. ASML vs. Applied Materials: Which AI Chip-Equipment Stock Is the Better Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent research is examining whether the latest 25% growth rate represents a sustainable new run rate or merely a recovery quarter, leaving some uncertainty about the durability of the expansion.
• Negative Sentiment: Despite strong long-term performance, the stock has experienced a notable 90-day decline and trades at a premium valuation. That combination may encourage profit-taking and makes the shares more sensitive to any slowdown in AI or semiconductor capital spending.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc is a global provider of materials engineering solutions used to manufacture semiconductors, displays and other advanced electronic products. The company develops and supplies equipment, services and software that help customers build and improve the performance of chips and display panels.

Its semiconductor products support processes including deposition, etch, patterning, inspection, metrology and materials modification. Applied Materials also provides equipment and services for display manufacturing, including technologies used in producing liquid-crystal and organic light-emitting diode displays, as well as solutions for adjacent markets such as solar and other specialty applications.

Founded in 1967 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Applied Materials serves semiconductor and display manufacturers worldwide through operations, customer-support centers and research and development activities across major technology-producing regions.

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