Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 13.4% – Should You Buy?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) was up 13.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $669.22 and last traded at $668.00. Approximately 16,006,438 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 103% from the average daily volume of 7,879,589 shares. The stock had previously closed at $588.97.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials introduced new systems for DRAM and advanced packaging, expanding its role in AI chip manufacturing and potentially boosting future demand. Applied Materials Introduces New Systems to Accelerate DRAM and Advanced Packaging for AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts said AMAT’s event highlighted strong opportunities in DRAM and advanced packaging, reinforcing the company’s AI-driven growth narrative. Applied Materials’ event focuses on DRAM, and advanced packaging: analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary remains constructive, with analysts still confident in Applied Materials’ strong competitive position. AMAT stock gets thumbs up from Wall Street – analysts remain confident about Applied Materials’ strong market position
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage suggests the stock may be looking expensive after its recent rally, which could limit near-term upside even if the long-term AI story stays intact. Applied Materials stock looks pricey—can AI demand justify the rally?
• Neutral Sentiment: One analysis noted that Applied Materials’ aggressive investment strategy may pressure cash flow in the near term, even though it supports longer-term growth. Can AMAT’s Investment Strategy Lift Future Cash Flow Growth?

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Truist Financial set a $575.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $530.00 price target on Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $518.19.

Applied Materials Stock Down 6.2%

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $473.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $377.36. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market cap of $497.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 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, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,695,164 shares in the company, valued at $1,006,503,625. The trade was a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total value of $6,335,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 346,642 shares in the company, valued at $219,608,106.26. This represents a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709 in the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 218.8% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 102 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Finally, MBM Wealth Consultants LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the first quarter worth $38,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Applied Materials

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.