Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Reaches New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Applied Materials shares hit a new 52-week high after Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target from $500 to $550 and kept an overweight rating.
• Other analysts have also been broadly positive, with several firms issuing buy or overweight ratings; the stock now has a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $378.66.
• The company recently beat earnings and revenue estimates, and it also increased its quarterly dividend to $0.53 per share from $0.46, signaling continued financial strength.

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on the stock from $500.00 to $550.00. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Applied Materials traded as high as $448.45 and last traded at $443.62, with a volume of 7903180 shares. The stock had previously closed at $435.44.

AMAT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. HSBC began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $517.00 price target for the company. KGI Securities raised shares of Applied Materials to an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Twenty-eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $378.66.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total value of $979,275.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the company'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 sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target on Applied Materials from $500 to $550 and reiterated an overweight rating, signaling higher expectations for the stock ahead of earnings.
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials announced a new partnership with TSMC at its EPIC Center to accelerate AI-related semiconductor scaling, which could strengthen its long-term growth story and reinforce demand for its advanced manufacturing tools. Applied Materials and TSMC Partner at the EPIC Center to Accelerate AI Scaling
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and preview articles highlighted AI-driven demand, high-bandwidth memory traction, and advanced packaging momentum as supportive themes heading into Applied Materials’ Q2 earnings, suggesting investors are anticipating solid results. AMAT to Post Q2 Earnings: Time to Buy, Sell or Hold the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock is also benefiting from a generally positive market backdrop, with equities and chip stocks firming ahead of key inflation data and earnings releases, including Applied Materials’ report. Inflation Readings, Cisco and AMAT Earnings, and More to Watch This Week
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports of a short-interest increase appear inconclusive because the reported short interest and change both show zero/NaN values, so this does not provide a meaningful bearish signal.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 617.2% in the third 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 worth $1,869,170,000 after acquiring an additional 7,856,576 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 25,824.4% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $86,610,000 after purchasing an additional 3,357,167 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $352.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.41, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $373.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $314.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.38 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.83%.

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.

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