Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-one analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $209.1538.

A number of equities analysts have commented on AMAT shares. DZ Bank cut Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Daiwa America cut shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $180.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,920,984 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $7,125,265,000 after purchasing an additional 391,540 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 21,026,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,836,807,000 after buying an additional 407,282 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 72.5% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,483,183,000 after buying an additional 5,700,349 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 13.7% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,936,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,635,992,000 after buying an additional 1,075,525 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,604,002,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.9%

AMAT stock opened at $226.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $180.04 billion, a PE ratio of 26.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.82. 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 has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $232.07. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $188.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $175.63.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. The company had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.21 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.93%.

Applied Materials Company Profile

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.