Mizuho upgrades Applied Materials to Outperform amid rising capital expenditures
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Jan 28 2026
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Should l Buy AMAT?
Source: seekingalpha
Applied Materials Inc (AMAT) saw a decline of 5.01% today, crossing below its 5-day SMA, as broader market conditions weighed on its stock performance.
Mizuho Securities upgraded Applied Materials from Neutral to Outperform, raising the price target from $275 to $370, anticipating significant benefits from rising capital expenditures in the U.S., Taiwan, and Japan. This upgrade reflects optimistic market expectations for semiconductor equipment demand, with projected equipment spending growth of 13% in 2026 and 12% in 2027. Despite the stock's decline, the upgrade indicates strong confidence in AMAT's future growth potential.
The semiconductor industry is expected to experience robust growth, driven by increasing capital expenditures from major players like TSMC and Intel. This positions Applied Materials favorably for future performance, despite today's market challenges.
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Analyst Views on AMAT
Wall Street analysts forecast AMAT stock price to fall over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for AMAT is 288.05 USD with a low forecast of 190.00 USD and a high forecast of 425.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
22 Analyst Rating
18 Buy
4 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 303.990
Low
190.00
Averages
288.05
High
425.00
Current: 303.990
Low
190.00
Averages
288.05
High
425.00
About AMAT
Applied Materials, Inc. is a materials engineering solution company. The Company provides equipment, services and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. It operates in three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services (AGS), and Display. The Semiconductor systems segment designs, develops, manufactures and sells a range of primarily 300 mm equipment used to fabricate semiconductor chips, also referred to as integrated circuits (ICs). The AGS segment provides services, spares and factory automation software to customer fabrication plants globally. The AGS segment also manufactures and sells 200mm and other equipment. The Display segment is comprised primarily of products for manufacturing liquid crystal displays (LCDs), organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), and other display technologies for televisions, monitors, laptops, personal computers (PCs), tablets, smartphones, and other consumer-oriented devices.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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