Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $254.33 and last traded at $254.8790, with a volume of 2002569 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $252.25.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $290.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Daiwa America cut Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 14th. B. Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $270.00 target price (up from $265.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $228.04.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $202.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.35, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.84. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $224.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $192.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.32 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the company’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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 28.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 61.2% in the first quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 16,600 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,409,000 after buying an additional 6,300 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 475,970 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $69,073,000 after buying an additional 5,520 shares during the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 932.3% during the 1st quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 12,326 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,815,000 after acquiring an additional 13,807 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beta Wealth Group Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 26.1% during the 1st quarter. Beta Wealth Group Inc. now owns 2,900 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.