KeyCorp Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock

Key Points

• KeyCorp raised its price target on Applied Materials from $450 to $550 and kept an overweight rating, implying about 24.8% upside from the stock’s current price.
• Applied Materials reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.86 and revenue of $7.91 billion both beating Wall Street estimates. The company also lifted its Q3 guidance, signaling continued demand tied to AI and semiconductor spending.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 28 Buy ratings versus 7 Holds and an average Moderate Buy rating, though the consensus target of $399.62 is well below KeyCorp’s new target. Recent insider sales and elevated institutional ownership were also noted in the article.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by stock analysts at KeyCorp from $450.00 to $550.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the manufacturing equipment provider's stock. KeyCorp's target price indicates a potential upside of 24.84% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on AMAT. Zacks Research cut Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. DZ Bank upgraded Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $430.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. Twenty-eight investment 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 stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $399.62.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $440.56 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $349.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.09, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $377.52 and a 200-day moving average of $318.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. Applied Materials has a fifty-two week low of $153.47 and a fifty-two week high of $448.45.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.Applied Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials will post 11.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total value of $979,275.00. Following the sale, the director owned 26,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after buying an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position 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 valued at $1,869,170,000 after buying an additional 7,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position 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 valued at $2,563,376,000 after buying an additional 3,583,751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials beat Q2 estimates, with EPS of $2.86 and revenue of $7.91 billion, both above Wall Street forecasts, reinforcing that demand for semiconductor equipment remains strong. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised guidance for Q3, with revenue outlook above consensus, signaling management expects AI and data-center spending to keep fueling orders. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports highlighted record or near-record margins, suggesting Applied Materials is benefiting from strong operating leverage as AI-related demand scales. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the report, including a TD Cowen reaffirmation of Buy and a higher price target, which can support the shares. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several previews and earnings-call coverage focused on the same core theme: investors are watching whether AI spending can offset softer China demand and export restrictions. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the strong results, some reports noted the stock traded lower in premarket, suggesting profit-taking or heightened expectations after a steep rally may be limiting immediate upside. Article Title

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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