Applied Materials (AMAT) ended the recent trading session at $518.21, demonstrating a +2.08% change from the preceding day's closing price. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 1.48% gain on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 1.32%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 2.13%.

The stock of maker of chipmaking equipment has fallen by 15.82% in the past month, lagging the Computer and Technology sector's loss of 5.75% and the S&P 500's gain of 0.19%.

The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Applied Materials in its forthcoming earnings report. The company is scheduled to release its earnings on August 13, 2026. In that report, analysts expect Applied Materials to post earnings of $3.36 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 35.48%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $9 billion, up 23.28% from the year-ago period.

Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $12.14 per share and revenue of $33.38 billion, indicating changes of +28.87% and +17.67%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Applied Materials. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.

Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which varies between #1 (Strong Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), carries an impressive track record of exceeding expectations, confirmed by external audits, with stocks at #1 delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.24% higher. Applied Materials currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Digging into valuation, Applied Materials currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 41.83. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 38.18.

We can additionally observe that AMAT currently boasts a PEG ratio of 1.29. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. Electronics - Semiconductors stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 1.34 based on yesterday's closing prices.

The Electronics - Semiconductors industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 40, positioning it in the top 17% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Ensure to harness Zacks.com to stay updated with all these stock-shifting metrics, among others, in the next trading sessions.

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Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT): Free Stock Analysis Report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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