Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Given New $245.00 Price Target at Mizuho

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price target increased by Mizuho from $205.00 to $245.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays increased their price target on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 14th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $245.48.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $248.27 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $238.99 and its 200 day moving average is $201.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market cap of $196.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $276.10.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.32 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Applied Materials will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 21.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,127,653.89. The trade was a 12.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898 over the last ninety days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,920,984 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $7,125,265,000 after purchasing an additional 391,540 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 21,026,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,836,807,000 after buying an additional 407,282 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 225.4% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,046,057,000 after buying an additional 10,305,182 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in Applied Materials by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,483,183,000 after buying an additional 5,700,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.