Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Applied Materials hit a new 52-week high intraday at $412, driven by bullish media attention (including Jim Cramer), investor optimism around its positioning in AI/HPC fabs, and participation in Tesla’s Terafab initiative.
• The company recently beat quarterly estimates with $2.38 EPS and healthy margins, analysts have mostly upgraded ratings, but the consensus price target of $368.29 sits well below the current share price; fiscal Q2 guidance of $2.44–$2.84 and the May 14 earnings call are near-term catalysts.
• Key risks include a rich valuation versus peers that could pressure shares if growth or guidance disappoints, plus potential regulatory downside from proposed export controls (the MATCH Act) that could limit sales to China.

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $412.00 and last traded at $410.46, with a volume of 534965 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $403.48.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer publicly called AMAT “a great buy,” joining other bullish media notes that are driving retail and momentum interest ahead of semiconductor earnings season. Jim Cramer on Applied Materials
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish investor write-ups (summarized on InsiderMonkey/Yahoo) highlight AMAT’s strong positioning in AI/HPC fabs, healthy margins and recurring equipment demand—supporting optimism on revenue durability and multiple expansion. Is Applied Materials a Good Stock to Buy?
• Positive Sentiment: Applied joined Tesla’s Terafab initiative, which could translate into longer-term equipment orders if the project scales—a potential new end-market for AMAT’s materials-engineering tools. Applied Materials Joins Tesla Terafab
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied and Advantest deepened integration on the EPIC platform to better tie wafer fab processes to automated testing—strategic for AI/HPC chip flow but with commercial impact to be realized over time. Applied Materials Deepens Chip Test Links
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied scheduled its fiscal Q2 2026 earnings call for May 14; investors are focusing on guidance and orders, so the upcoming print is a likely near-term catalyst. Applied Materials to Report Fiscal Q2 Results
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and opinion pieces warn that AMAT’s valuation is rich vs. historicals and peers, which raises downside risk if growth or guidance disappoints. Is Applied Materials a Good Stock to Buy Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk: Micron-led lobbying for tighter export controls (MATCH Act) could increase restrictions on sales of advanced chipmaking equipment to China, which would directly affect AMAT’s addressable market and order cadence. Micron Pushes Congress on Export Restrictions

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Summit Insights upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. KGI Securities upgraded shares of Applied Materials to an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $368.29.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $323.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.71. The company's 50 day moving average is $363.69 and its 200 day moving average is $298.99.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The firm's revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 21.70%.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 transaction of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth $26,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Finally, 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 buying an additional 38 shares during the period. 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.

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