Brokers Issue Forecasts for AMAT FY2025 Earnings

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) – Analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald issued their FY2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Applied Materials in a research note issued on Tuesday, January 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst C. Muse expects that the manufacturing equipment provider will post earnings per share of $9.47 for the year. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has a “Overweight” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Applied Materials’ current full-year earnings is $9.38 per share.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.71.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $190.70 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $155.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.53. Applied Materials has a 1-year low of $158.96 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company’s 50-day moving average is $173.55 and its 200 day moving average is $189.91.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.58%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 29.8% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,509,439 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Applied Materials by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,077,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $340,895,000 after buying an additional 164,085 shares in the last quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp raised its stake in Applied Materials by 47.0% in the third quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 67,915 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $13,722,000 after buying an additional 21,699 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.4% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,139,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $230,158,000 after acquiring an additional 15,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 62.6% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,698,282 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $343,138,000 after acquiring an additional 653,739 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.