Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Given New $550.00 Price Target at KeyCorp

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its target price hoisted by KeyCorp from $450.00 to $550.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $315.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $525.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $463.89.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock opened at $436.62 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $379.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $319.44. The stock has a market cap of $346.51 billion, a PE ratio of 41.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Applied Materials has a 1 year low of $153.47 and a 1 year high of $448.45.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 38.48% and a net margin of 29.31%.The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.39 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 11.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total value of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after buying an additional 17,829,377 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 617.2% during the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after acquiring an additional 7,856,576 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Applied Materials by 40.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its position in Applied Materials by 25,824.4% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $86,610,000 after acquiring an additional 3,357,167 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials posted record Q2 results, beating EPS and revenue expectations and lifting its outlook, with management citing strong AI infrastructure spending as a key growth driver. Applied Materials Announces Second Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street turned more bullish after the report, with multiple firms raising price targets, including Bank of America, JPMorgan, Mizuho, Morgan Stanley, Needham, and KeyCorp, reinforcing confidence in multi-year earnings growth. Applied Materials Sees Multi-Year AI Boom Driving Record Revenue And Growth Through 2028
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts highlighted a durable AI-driven semiconductor upcycle, suggesting Applied Materials could sustain elevated demand and margins through 2027-2028. Krish Sankar Reaffirms Buy on Applied Materials
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader market backdrop is weaker, with major indexes down as Treasury yields and oil prices rise, which is adding headwinds for high-valuation tech and AI stocks. Stock Market Today: Dow Falls As Oil Prices, Yields Jump; Applied Materials, Nvidia, Cerebras Slide
• Negative Sentiment: Even with the strong earnings report, the stock is slipping as investors rotate out after a sharp year-to-date rally, showing some concern that expectations may already be very high. Applied Materials slips despite record quarter and strong outlook (AMAT)

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.