Erste Group Bank Has Optimistic View of AMAT FY2027 Earnings

Key Points

• Erste Group Bank raised Applied Materials’ FY2027 EPS forecast to $18.56 from $17.13, while maintaining a “Hold” rating. Analysts overall remain moderately bullish, with a consensus price target of $657.76.
• Applied Materials exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.50 EPS and $9.12 billion in revenue versus estimates of $3.40 and $8.99 billion, respectively; revenue increased 24.8% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equal to a $2.12 annualized payout and a 0.5% yield, while insiders have sold 284,192 shares worth approximately $172.6 million over the past three months.

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) - Analysts at Erste Group Bank boosted their FY2027 earnings per share estimates for shares of Applied Materials in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, August 27th. Erste Group Bank analyst S. Lingnau now forecasts that the manufacturing equipment provider will post earnings per share of $18.56 for the year, up from their prior estimate of $17.13. Erste Group Bank has a "Hold" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Applied Materials' current full-year earnings is $12.76 per share.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on AMAT. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $605.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Applied Materials from $646.00 to $642.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $657.76.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $458.46 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $363.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials has a 12-month low of $154.46 and a 12-month high of $739.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The firm's 50-day moving average is $547.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $458.57.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $296,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the period. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the second quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC now owns 961 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $695,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $725,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 5.9% during the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 13.0% during the second quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $132,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. The trade was a 18.57% 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 the SEC website. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total transaction of $6,335,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 346,642 shares of the company's stock, valued at $219,608,106.26. This trade represents a 2.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 284,192 shares of company stock valued at $172,625,209. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.28%.

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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