Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Cut to “Hold” at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $502.00 to $647.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $603.23.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $539.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $428.06 billion, a PE ratio of 50.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $739.67. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $559.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $437.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials will post 12.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 20,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,599,843 shares in the company, valued at $1,176,236,570.46. This trade represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total transaction of $5,092,941.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This trade represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harborfront Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly optimistic about AMAT, with consensus price targets implying additional upside. Citi reportedly identified Applied Materials as a top semiconductor pick following the sector’s selloff, while other coverage highlights the company’s strong position in deposition, etch, inspection and wafer-processing equipment. Are Wall Street Analysts Predicting Applied Materials Stock Will Climb or Sink?
• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure spending is supporting the outlook for semiconductor manufacturing equipment. A potential Tesla-SpaceX “Terafab” buildout, along with rising demand for AI chips, advanced packaging and memory, could create additional opportunities for Applied Materials. Tesla-SpaceX Terafab Bet
• Positive Sentiment: Expectations for the August 13 report are favorable: analysts anticipate earnings growth and a potential beat. Applied Materials’ previous quarter exceeded consensus on both earnings and revenue, with revenue up 11.4% year over year, providing a constructive comparison for the upcoming release. Applied Materials Reports Next Week
• Neutral Sentiment: Options markets are pricing a potentially large earnings move, reportedly around 11%. That highlights significant event risk: a strong report and outlook could extend the rally, but merely meeting high expectations may not be enough. Options Market and AMAT’s Earnings Move
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank lowered its rating on AMAT to Hold. The downgrade adds pressure after the stock’s strong rebound and reinforces concerns that substantial AI optimism is already reflected in the valuation. Applied Materials Rating Lowered to Hold
• Negative Sentiment: Investor Michael Burry’s disclosed short positions in AI-linked semiconductor names, including Applied Materials, have revived concerns about an AI-stock reversal and heightened volatility. As Burry Targets AI Chip Names

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.