Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $244.37 and last traded at $243.3060, with a volume of 4950900 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $230.91.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Citigroup increased their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $270.00 price target (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $256.00 to $252.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised 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 investment 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 stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $228.04.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.1%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $222.42 and a 200-day moving average of $191.44. The stock has a market cap of $199.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.50.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total value of $952,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd increased its stake in Applied Materials by 435.0% in the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 214 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Activest Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5,325.0% during the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

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.