Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Upgraded at BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) to a hold rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

AMAT has been the subject of a number of other reports. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $270.00 target price (up from $265.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Bank of America raised shares of Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $290.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.74.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT traded down $11.47 during trading on Monday, reaching $223.67. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,075,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,662,151. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $216.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $188.70. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $242.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $178.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. Applied Materials’s revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.32 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 21.20%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. IFG Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1,008.1% in the second quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 36,156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,619,000 after acquiring an additional 32,893 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 23.0% in the 2nd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 12,643 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,315,000 after purchasing an additional 2,363 shares during the period. Sienna Gestion boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 10.2% in the second quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 113,221 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $18,924,000 after buying an additional 10,468 shares during the last quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. grew its position in Applied Materials by 7.6% during the second quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 501,587 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $91,826,000 after buying an additional 35,437 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 9.5% during the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 77,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $14,129,000 after buying an additional 6,704 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.