Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 1% – Here’s Why
by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets DailyApplied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) rose 1% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $262.83 and last traded at $259.01. Approximately 3,996,990 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 48% from the average daily volume of 7,685,653 shares. The stock had previously closed at $256.41.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research analysts recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $350.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $246.78.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on AMAT
Applied Materials Trading Up 1.0%
The firm has a market capitalization of $205.38 billion, a PE ratio of 29.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $240.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $203.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.
Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 24.67%.Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.32 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.
Applied Materials Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 21.20%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials
In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,127,653.89. This trade represents a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total value of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Institutional Trading of Applied Materials
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5,325.0% in the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.
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.