Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 5% – What’s Next?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) was up 5% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $244.62 and last traded at $242.46. Approximately 8,100,976 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 5% from the average daily volume of 7,696,403 shares. The stock had previously closed at $230.91.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. UBS Group upgraded Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 14th. Craig Hallum restated a “hold” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 15th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $228.04.

Applied Materials Stock Up 5.0%

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $219.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $190.42. The company has a market cap of $193.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.90, 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.32 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.08, for a total transaction of $936,320.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 88,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,681,202.08. This represents a 4.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Applied Materials by 225.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,046,057,000 after purchasing an additional 10,305,182 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $1,604,002,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 617.2% during the third 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 worth $1,869,170,000 after acquiring an additional 7,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,409,320,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter worth approximately $1,085,600,000. Institutional investors 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.