Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Down 3.9% – Here’s Why

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price was down 3.9% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $497.73 and last traded at $514.33. 8,541,800 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 3% from the average session volume of 8,259,510 shares. The stock had previously closed at $535.31.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Berenberg Bank upgraded or reaffirmed Applied Materials with a Buy rating, adding support to the bullish case for the stock. Applied Materials Receives a Buy from Berenberg Bank
• Positive Sentiment: Recent research highlights AMAT as a potential beneficiary of sustained AI semiconductor demand, advanced foundry expansion, and increasing chip-fabrication investment. Zacks also placed the stock on its Rank #1 momentum list, while other commentary described it as a candidate to accumulate ahead of a potential foundry spending ramp. Best Momentum Stock to Buy for August 19th
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials recently delivered a record fiscal third quarter, with revenue of $9.12 billion, up 24.8% year over year and above estimates, while EPS of $3.50 also exceeded consensus. Fourth-quarter EPS guidance of $3.82 to $4.22 was reportedly above Wall Street expectations, reinforcing the company’s strong earnings trajectory.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain divided on valuation. AMAT’s AI exposure, broad equipment portfolio, and international revenue growth support its long-term outlook, but the stock’s premium earnings multiple leaves less room for execution setbacks. One comparison favored ASE Technology because of its lower valuation and improving margins. Applied Materials Is Priced For Perfection
• Negative Sentiment: Chip-equipment shares, including Applied Materials, Lam Research, and Teradyne, have sold off together even as broader markets held up. The synchronized decline has raised concerns that investors are reassessing the durability and timing of AI-infrastructure capital expenditures rather than reacting to AMAT-specific weakness. What’s Prompting the Selloff in Chip Equipment Stocks?
• Negative Sentiment: The stock had already gained roughly 98% in 2026 and 31% over three months, increasing the likelihood of profit-taking and making strong results appear insufficient when expectations are exceptionally high.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Erste Group Bank downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $575.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group set a $675.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $659.83.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $391.99 billion, a PE ratio of 42.55, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $565.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $449.54.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The company had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.48 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid 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 dividend yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 18.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 20,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $735.22, for a total transaction of $14,704,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,599,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,236,570.46. The trade was a 1.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Harborfront Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 34.8% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 93 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.