Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for AMAT Earnings

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q4 2025 earnings per share estimates for Applied Materials in a research note issued on Thursday, June 5th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the manufacturing equipment provider will post earnings per share of $2.21 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $2.22. The consensus estimate for Applied Materials' current full-year earnings is $9.38 per share.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 target price (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.48.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of AMAT opened at $164.19 on Friday. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $131.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $151.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $163.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.09 EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.3% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 12,053 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,749,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 126.0% in the 1st quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,057 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,475,000 after buying an additional 9,509 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,455,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 12.3% in the first quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 21,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $3,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.1% during the first quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 8,922 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,295,000 after acquiring an additional 436 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Applied Materials

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.

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