Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target Cut to $520.00 by Analysts at Bank of America

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price objective dropped by equities research analysts at Bank of America from $650.00 to $520.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock. Bank of America‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 36.50% from the company’s previous close.

AMAT has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $710.00 price objective (up from $550.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $563.00 to $538.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $650.00 to $590.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $580.00 to $470.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Twenty-nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $614.92.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $380.95 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.84, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $439.22 and a 200-day moving average of $445.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Applied Materials has a 12-month low of $203.40 and a 12-month high of $739.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $4.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 38.02% and a net margin of 30.05%. The business had revenue of $10.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 4.150-4.550 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 12.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total transaction of $465,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,877,960. This trade represents a 3.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total value of $394,806.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,732,245.36. This represents a 18.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 9,225 shares of company stock worth $4,454,181 over the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 85.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 69,525,842 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $50,267,184,000 after acquiring an additional 32,018,892 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $5,252,863,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $1,512,287,000. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 7,808,207 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,645,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 80,212,518 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $57,993,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,237,685 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

Here are a few of the latest headlines about AMAT:

• Positive Sentiment: Fiscal Q4 revenue reached a record $10.41 billion, up 53% year over year, while adjusted EPS of $4.16 topped the $4.06 consensus. The company also reported record annual revenue and higher margins. Applied Materials Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2026 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Management said customer demand is strong, with some customers seeking earlier deliveries, but component sourcing and clean-room capacity limit how quickly the company can ship. China is expected to represent less than a quarter of shipments in 2027, reducing exposure but leaving export restrictions a consideration. Applied Materials earnings and outlook coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the results, the market’s response has been muted. Broader technology weakness and lingering Nvidia-related concerns may be tempering investor enthusiasm, while recent steep declines in chip-equipment shares have left investors looking for stronger confirmation that the recovery will continue. Applied Materials’ Beat Gets a Lukewarm Reception

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc. develops and supplies equipment, software and services used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its technologies help customers build and process materials at the microscopic scale required for chips and other electronic products. The company’s offerings include systems for depositing, removing and modifying materials, as well as inspection, measurement and process-control tools. It also provides equipment and services for advanced semiconductor packaging and supports customers with maintenance, upgrades and manufacturing software.