Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading 4.3% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Applied Materials shares traded up 4.3% to about $428.62 after Seaport Research Partners upgraded the stock to a strong‑buy.
• Several firms raised ratings and price targets (e.g., Morgan Stanley $454, UBS $480, Goldman $390), leaving 27 analysts with Buy versus 7 Hold and a MarketBeat consensus of Moderate Buy (average target $370.86).
• The company beat quarterly estimates (EPS $2.38 vs. $2.21; revenue $7.01B vs. $6.88B), set Q2 guidance of $2.440–$2.840, and increased its quarterly dividend to $0.53.

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) traded up 4.3% during trading on Wednesday after Seaport Research Partners upgraded the stock to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $432.81 and last traded at $428.62. 7,182,940 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 0% from the average session volume of 7,174,761 shares. The stock had previously closed at $410.82.

Several other research firms have also commented on AMAT. Summit Insights upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. DZ Bank raised shares of Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $370.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at $10,778,624.78. The trade was a 12.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the transaction, 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Acquisition expands AMAT’s AI packaging capabilities — Applied agreed to buy the NEXX business from ASMPT, adding panel‑level advanced packaging tools, teams and IP with no regulatory approvals required, strengthening AMAT’s positioning in high‑growth AI chip assembly. Applied Materials Expands AI Packaging With NEXX Deal As Stock Surges
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade and higher price target — Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $454 and maintained an Overweight rating, providing institutional support for the stock’s near‑term momentum. Read More
• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure demand is lifting the whole equipment ecosystem — coverage of semiconductor ETFs (SOXX, SMH, FTXL) highlights accelerating capital spend for AI datacenters and chips; that secular demand benefits AMAT as a key supplier across logic, DRAM and advanced packaging. Semiconductor Leaders SOXX, SMH, and FTXL Are Crushing It on AI Infrastructure Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings track record and guidance support expectations — recent analyst notes highlight AMAT’s history of topping estimates and continued upside from AI‑driven demand across its wafer‑fab portfolio, underpinning forward EPS expectations. Will Applied Materials (AMAT) Beat Estimates Again?
• Positive Sentiment: Peer results point to sustained demand — recent beats at semiconductor equipment and materials suppliers (Astera Labs, Advanced Energy, Lattice) reinforce a demand backdrop that should flow to AMAT’s bookings. Astera Labs Q1 Earnings Beat Advanced Energy Q1 Earnings Beat Lattice Semiconductor Q1 Earnings Beat
• Neutral Sentiment: Technicals show short‑term strength — AMAT recently moved above its 20‑day moving average, a short‑term bullish signal that can attract momentum traders. Applied Materials Just Overtook the 20‑Day Moving Average
• Neutral Sentiment: Company investor engagement — AMAT management will appear at upcoming investor conferences, which can provide fresh detail on orders, margins and the packaging roadmap but are not immediate catalysts. Applied Materials to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conferences
• Neutral Sentiment: Premium valuation noted — some analysts point out AMAT’s elevated P/S multiple as investors price in AI growth; this supports a bullish case but implies higher expectations that could amplify volatility. Should You Buy, Sell or Hold AMAT Stock at a P/S Valuation of 9.39X?

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Grandfield & Dodd LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $55,180,000 after acquiring an additional 17,397 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Applied Materials by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,101,772 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $635,057,000 after acquiring an additional 145,050 shares in the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan grew its position in Applied Materials by 82.2% in the 3rd quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 26,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $5,512,000 after acquiring an additional 12,132 shares in the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its position in Applied Materials by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 96,712 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $19,801,000 after acquiring an additional 17,288 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,531,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $340.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.66. 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $369.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $308.46.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion during 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 revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.14 EPS 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 given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio 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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