Zacks Research Expects Weaker Earnings for Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research cut their Q3 2025 EPS estimates for shares of Applied Materials in a research note issued to investors on Monday, December 30th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the manufacturing equipment provider will post earnings per share of $2.36 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.38. The consensus estimate for Applied Materials’ current full-year earnings is $9.48 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Applied Materials’ Q4 2025 earnings at $2.43 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.52 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.53 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $2.71 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $10.16 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $10.78 EPS.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.12 earnings per share.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 target price (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $220.29.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $162.63 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $175.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $196.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $132.33 billion, a PE ratio of 18.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.52. Applied Materials has a twelve month low of $148.05 and a twelve month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,808,047 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,841,178,000 after acquiring an additional 672,548 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,826,373 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,994,968,000 after purchasing an additional 371,866 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,413,112 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,316,269,000 after purchasing an additional 858,122 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,861,933 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,790,554,000 after buying an additional 318,445 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Applied Materials by 29.8% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,327,707,000 after buying an additional 1,509,439 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Applied Materials

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.