Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading 1.8% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) rose 1.8% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $463.88 and last traded at $458.17. Approximately 6,034,659 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 18% from the average daily volume of 7,317,142 shares. The stock had previously closed at $450.06.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of a number of research reports. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. DZ Bank raised shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $465.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.13.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.8%

The company has a market cap of $363.77 billion, a PE ratio of 43.02, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $397.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $334.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total transaction of $116,370.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,461.60. This represents a 5.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,128 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total transaction of $507,600.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,944,800. The trade was a 4.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 617.2% in the 3rd 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 worth $1,869,170,000 after purchasing an additional 7,856,576 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the period. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 25,824.4% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $86,610,000 after purchasing an additional 3,357,167 shares during the period. 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.