Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 2.2% After Analyst Upgrade

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s stock price traded up 2.2% during trading on Wednesday after Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on the stock from $260.00 to $390.00. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the stock. Applied Materials traded as high as $328.69 and last traded at $325.24. 7,863,604 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 4% from the average session volume of 8,190,423 shares. The stock had previously closed at $318.23.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Barclays raised Applied Materials from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $360.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $325.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, January 12th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $285.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $286.89.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,127,653.89. The trade was a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898 in the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

More Applied Materials News

Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Materials this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Needham raised its price target sharply to $390 (from $260) and maintained a Buy — a sizable, high-profile upgrade that supports upside for the shares. Needham raises AMAT price target
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest in AMAT has fallen significantly, reducing near-term bearish pressure and making upward moves easier to sustain. Short interest decrease
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs and other banks are lifting price targets across large tech names, a backdrop that can lift AMAT via sector re-rating and inclusion in bullish analyst notes. Goldman Sachs raises targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces are reframing AMAT as an AI-toolchain winner (AI-driven beats shifting the investment narrative), which supports higher long-term demand but leaves timing and magnitude open to debate. AI-fueled narrative analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparisons with ASML highlight AMAT’s broader exposure (HBM, NAND, packaging) versus ASML’s EUV specialization — a diversification story that may appeal to investors preferring multi-node exposure over a single-technology play. AMAT vs ASML comparison
• Neutral Sentiment: Several media rundowns reiterate AMAT’s Q3 positioning relative to other semiconductor-equipment names — useful context but not an immediate catalyst. Q3 Rundown
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation/“too late” concerns after a ~72% one-year surge — several articles question whether gains are already priced in, which could cap upside for risk-averse investors or trigger profit-taking. Valuation concerns
• Positive Sentiment: Media pieces urging investors to “ignore the China drama” and buy AMAT emphasize durable end-market demand (AI, memory), supporting the bullish thesis. Buy thesis coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Broad “spotting winners” lists include AMAT as a candidate among semiconductor-manufacturing plays — helpful for sentiment but not a direct fundamental catalyst. Spotting winners

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Sutton Place Investors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $213,000. Ledyard National Bank raised its stake in Applied Materials by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 6,938 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 35,183 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $9,042,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,029,000. Finally, BIP Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $441,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $266.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $220.79. The firm has a market cap of $257.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.32 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.20%.

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.