Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 4.1% – Still a Buy?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price shot up 4.1% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $739.67 and last traded at $723.00. Approximately 15,945,656 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 95% from the average session volume of 8,164,900 shares. The stock had previously closed at $694.64.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials was highlighted as a key beneficiary of the AI buildout, with coverage emphasizing that the company is helping power semiconductor expansion through DRAM and advanced packaging innovations. That reinforces the bull case for continued demand from AI chipmakers. Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) Discusses DRAM and Advanced Packaging Innovations for AI-Driven Semiconductor Growth Prepared Remarks Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks named AMAT one of its “Best Momentum Stocks to Buy for July 2nd,” putting it on a Strong Buy momentum list and signaling continued technical strength. Best Momentum Stocks to Buy for July 2nd
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary also described Applied Materials as “silently powering the AI boom,” underscoring its leverage to spending by the largest AI and semiconductor companies. Applied Materials Is Silently Powering the AI Boom. Here’s Why.
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s strong recent earnings and guidance continue to support the long-term narrative: Applied Materials beat on EPS and revenue last quarter, and analysts have kept a generally constructive stance on the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Investor sentiment was also dampened by insider selling, including CEO Gary Dickerson’s recent sales totaling more than 78,000 shares, which can raise caution even though he still owns a large stake. Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) CEO Sells $14,704,400.00 in Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Shares also appear to have been hit by broader semiconductor sector weakness and profit-taking after a huge rally, suggesting today’s decline is more about valuation and sector rotation than a deterioration in Applied Materials’ fundamentals.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Truist Financial set a $575.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Argus upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $553.56.

Applied Materials Trading Down 7.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51. The company has a market cap of $478.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.56. The company’s fifty day moving average is $491.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $386.97.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total value of $25,264,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at $180,204,069.76. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 119.8% during 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 purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 617.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after purchasing an additional 7,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after buying an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 25,824.4% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $86,610,000 after buying an additional 3,357,167 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.