Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 4.4% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Shares jumped 4.4% to $338.94 on Monday with about 9.27 million shares traded (≈14% above average), giving AMAT a market cap near $269 billion and a P/E of 34.7.
• Analysts are increasing targets—several firms raised price objectives (Needham $440, Stifel $450, UBS $430) and MarketBeat shows a "Moderate Buy" consensus with a $363.46 price target.
• Quarterly results topped estimates: Q1 EPS $2.38 vs. $2.21 expected and revenue $7.01B vs. $6.88B, management guided Q2 EPS to $2.44–$2.84 and announced a $0.46 quarterly dividend.

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 4.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $339.16 and last traded at $338.94. Approximately 9,267,152 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 14% from the average daily volume of 8,094,610 shares. The stock had previously closed at $324.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group set a $430.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Susquehanna raised Applied Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $180.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Up 4.4%

The firm has a market capitalization of $268.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $326.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $256.82.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business's revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given 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 is currently 18.83%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,778,624.78. This trade represents a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the business'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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 358,395 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $92,211,000 after purchasing an additional 29,186 shares in the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 25,824.4% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $86,610,000 after buying an additional 3,357,167 shares during the period. Union Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $521,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 2,444,695 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $629,125,000 after buying an additional 157,582 shares during the period. Finally, Worthington Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $894,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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