Research Analysts Issue Forecasts for AMAT FY2025 Earnings

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) - William Blair boosted their FY2025 earnings estimates for shares of Applied Materials in a report released on Friday, May 16th. William Blair analyst J. Dorsheimer now expects that the manufacturing equipment provider will post earnings per share of $9.52 for the year, up from their prior estimate of $9.51. The consensus estimate for Applied Materials' current full-year earnings is $9.38 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Applied Materials' Q4 2025 earnings at $2.40 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.28 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.26 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.30 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $2.40 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $9.53 EPS.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on AMAT. B. Riley dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $164.00 to $162.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Barclays cut their price target on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 price target (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.48.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of AMAT traded down $1.71 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $160.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,353,771 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,877,251. The company has a 50 day moving average of $149.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $165.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $130.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. Applied Materials has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. Applied Materials's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% during the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the first quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Company Profile

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.