Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading Up 2.2% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Applied Materials shares rose about 2.2% intraday to $357.21 (high $359.05), with trading volume roughly 17% below the average session; the stock had closed at $349.47 prior to the move.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend 15% to $0.53 (ninth consecutive year of increases), a signal of management confidence in cash flow amid an AI-driven capital expenditure cycle.
• Analysts turned more bullish after AMAT beat quarterly estimates (EPS $2.38 vs. $2.21; revenue $7.01B vs. $6.88B) and set Q2 guidance of $2.44–2.84, prompting multiple price-target upgrades (e.g., Susquehanna $400, Morgan Stanley $432, Needham $440) and a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" (target $363.46).

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 2.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $359.05 and last traded at $357.21. 6,402,763 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 7,756,068 shares. The stock had previously closed at $349.47.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised its quarterly dividend by 15%, continuing nine years of dividend growth and signaling management confidence in cash flow and the AI-driven capex cycle. The hike (to $0.53/share) and a modest forward payout ratio support shareholder returns and likely boosted buying. Applied Materials Lifts Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and investor write-ups are bullish on AMAT’s role in the AI and memory/logic equipment cycle (including a Seeking Alpha deep-dive and noted bullish positioning by investors such as Ken Fisher), which supports upside expectations for revenue and margins. Seeking Alpha: AI Gold Rush InsiderMonkey: Ken Fisher Positive
• Positive Sentiment: Industry capex signal: imec secured a rare ASML High-NA EUV tool—an indicator that leading-edge chipmaking is accelerating, which bodes well for equipment suppliers like AMAT as customers prepare next-generation fabs. imec Secures ASML High NA Tool
• Neutral Sentiment: Feature pieces summarize why investors are watching AMAT (growth from AI/memory demand, recent strong run-up). Useful context but not new catalysts by itself. 3 Reasons Investors Watch Applied Materials
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data in the feed appears to show zero/NaN totals and a 0.0 days-to-cover figure — likely a reporting anomaly and not a meaningful signal about investor positioning. (Multiple short-interest entries in the last 48 hours.)
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market caution — futures pulled back on cautious Fed commentary and chip-stock volatility (Micron fell after blowout results), which can pressure momentum names like AMAT in the near term. Dow Jones Futures: Market Caution

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Susquehanna raised Applied Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $400.00 in a report on Sunday, January 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. KGI Securities raised shares of Applied Materials to an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $363.46.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.3%

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $337.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $266.38. The firm has a market cap of $283.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its 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. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The firm had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.38 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue 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 predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 18.83%.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, 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 value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at $10,219,322.19. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 48.7% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 150.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.