Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $350.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. KGI Securities raised Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $363.04.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $369.83 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market cap of $293.54 billion, a PE ratio of 37.85, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.70. Applied Materials has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $376.32. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $302.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $241.35.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,127,653.89. This trade represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,051,063.65. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 9,609 shares of company stock worth $2,914,628 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,731,523,000 after buying an additional 330,197 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,920,984 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $7,125,265,000 after acquiring an additional 391,540 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after acquiring an additional 17,829,377 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $3,836,807,000 after acquiring an additional 407,282 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 72.5% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,483,183,000 after acquiring an additional 5,700,349 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Earnings and guidance outperformed — AMAT beat Q1 EPS and revenue estimates and management gave strong growth guidance, which has been cited as a primary driver of renewed investor optimism. 3 Under-the-Radar Earnings Surprises Could Signal a New Trend (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and target raises — Zacks upgraded AMAT to a “Strong Buy” and several banks (Goldman, UBS, Barclays, Stifel) have lifted price targets and ratings in recent days, supporting upward momentum. Applied Materials (AMAT) Upgraded to Strong Buy: Here’s Why
• Positive Sentiment: Large bullish options flow — unusually heavy call buying (~97,138 calls, ~+231% vs. average) suggests traders are positioning for further upside or hedging long exposure, which can amplify near‑term gains.
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst commentary — some outlets highlight differing views across analysts (valuation vs. secular cyclical upside), creating variable near‑term sentiment despite the bullish headlines. Analysts Have Conflicting Sentiments on These Technology Companies
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reporting anomaly — filings show zero/NaN short interest and a 0.0 days‑to‑cover metric; this is almost certainly a data/reporting error and not meaningful for positioning today.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares (~$1.8M) on Feb 17, trimming his stake by ~3.5%. Routine liquidity sales are common, but some investors view insider sales as a modest negative signal. SEC Form 4

About Applied Materials

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.