Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $639.52 and last traded at $627.8710, with a volume of 958795 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $617.11.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo upgraded Applied Materials to Buy, adding to a growing list of bullish analyst calls and reinforcing confidence in the company’s growth outlook.
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials unveiled two new chipmaking systems for next-generation AI chips, highlighting new product momentum in its core semiconductor equipment business and potential demand tied to AI infrastructure.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary and analyst notes continue to suggest AI-driven semiconductor spending could support Applied Materials’ premium valuation and future earnings growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares, a disclosure that may get attention but does not by itself signal a change in the company’s fundamentals.
• Negative Sentiment: Applied Materials fell alongside other chip names after a report that SK Hynix is slowing HBM expansion, which raised concerns about near-term AI-chip demand across the sector.
• Negative Sentiment: Some market coverage also flagged AMAT’s valuation as stretched after a strong rally, suggesting investors may be more sensitive to any slowdown in growth expectations.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Truist Financial set a $575.00 target price on Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, May 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $501.26.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $465.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.01, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.67. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $459.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $370.55.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total transaction of $25,264,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 146,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the period. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 30.1% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,747,000 after acquiring an additional 3,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 59.3% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $77,383,000 after acquiring an additional 157,426 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.