Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) finished Monday’s session on a strong note—and then stayed relatively steady after the closing bell—heading into a holiday-shortened week where lighter liquidity and a busy U.S. data calendar could amplify moves in semiconductor stocks.
AMAT stock price after the bell: where Applied Materials stands tonight
Applied Materials shares closed Monday, December 22, 2025 at $259.01, up 1.01%, marking a third consecutive day of gains. The stock is still about 6% below its 52‑week high of $276.10 set earlier this month (Dec. 10), and Monday’s trading volume was notably light versus its recent average. [1]
In extended trading shortly after the close, AMAT was near $259.01 as of the latest available update (about 6:04 p.m. ET), following an intraday range of $257.59 to $263.00 and volume around 4.11 million shares for the regular session.
Why the “after-hours” print matters: After-hours trading can be thin, spreads can widen, and price moves don’t always reflect broad participation—especially in a holiday week. Nasdaq’s standard after-hours session runs from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET. [2]
What moved AMAT today: a solid tape, but not a headline-driven surge
Monday’s gain for Applied Materials played out against a generally positive U.S. market backdrop. The S&P 500 rose 0.6%, the Dow gained 0.5%, and the Nasdaq added 0.5%, with technology and banks among the leaders—an environment that often supports mega-cap tech and AI-adjacent semiconductor names. [3]
For AMAT specifically, the price action looked more like continued momentum and positioning than a reaction to a single company announcement: volume was well below the stock’s 50‑day average, which can signal a quieter, more incremental bid rather than an urgent repricing. [4]
Today’s AMAT news and analysis: what investors were reading on Dec. 22
While there wasn’t a blockbuster corporate release from Applied Materials dated today, several widely circulated items shaped the conversation around the stock:
1) Mizuho’s view: higher target, but key risks highlighted
Coverage circulating today reiterated that Mizuho raised its price target to $245 from $205 (on Dec. 17) and kept a Neutral rating, arguing for more upside into 2026 as the firm’s outlook for wafer-fab equipment spending improved—but also flagging pressure points, including share loss in China and exposure to Intel. [5]
Why this matters for AMAT: Applied Materials is deeply tied to global wafer-fab capex, and the market is still trying to balance an AI-led spending upcycle with geopolitics and customer concentration risks.
2) Jefferies: big price target, AI-driven capex thesis
Jefferies recently raised its AMAT price target to $360 from $260 and reiterated a Buy rating, pointing to artificial intelligence as a driver of semiconductor capital spending across leading edge, DRAM, and packaging—areas where Applied Materials has meaningful exposure. [6]
3) Options-focused commentary: “smart money” chatter and target-price roundup
A popular options-activity write-up highlighted unusual options positioning and also summarized several prominent targets currently circulating on the Street—referencing, for example, UBS (Buy, $285), Mizuho (Neutral, $245), KeyBanc (Overweight, $285), Wells Fargo (Overweight, $290) and Jefferies (Buy, $360). [7]
Options-flow articles can be useful for sentiment, but they are not the same as fundamental confirmation—especially in thin holiday trading.
4) Institutional-ownership headlines tied to 13F filings
Another widely shared item pointed to a Q3 position increase by a specific institutional holder, based on Form 13F-related reporting. These stories can influence sentiment at the margin, but keep in mind: 13F data is backward-looking (it reflects prior-quarter positioning). [8]
5) No fresh company press release today; last major IR update remains recent dividend and FY2025 results
Applied Materials’ most recent widely distributed investor-relations items remain:
- A $0.46 quarterly dividend announcement (payable March 12, 2026; record date Feb. 19, 2026) and commentary on capital returns and repurchases. [9]
- The company’s fiscal Q4 and FY2025 results (released Nov. 13), including record annual revenue of $28.37B, and management commentary about preparing operations to support higher demand beginning in the second half of calendar 2026. [10]
The bigger forecast backdrop: semiconductor equipment spending still points higher
One of the most important “macro” supports for AMAT’s bull case is the broader equipment-spending outlook:
SEMI forecasts global chipmaking equipment sales rising 9% to $126B in 2026 and another 7.3% to $135B in 2027, driven by demand for logic and memory chips used in AI applications (with Asia still the dominant production region). [11]
Applied Materials is consistently listed among the major beneficiaries of that spending cycle—alongside names like ASML, KLA, Lam Research, and Tokyo Electron. [12]
What to know before the market opens tomorrow (Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025)
For AMAT investors, Tuesday’s pre-market setup may matter as much as anything company-specific, because semicap stocks can be sensitive to yields, growth expectations, and risk appetite.
1) 8:30 a.m. ET: delayed U.S. GDP report (Q3) + corporate profits
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is scheduled to release the Gross Domestic Product report for Q3 2025 (initial estimate) at 8:30 a.m. ET—a release that was rescheduled due to the shutdown-disrupted calendar. [13]
If the GDP print surprises (either stronger or weaker), the first reaction is often in Treasury yields and index futures, which can quickly ripple into high-duration tech and semiconductor equipment names.
2) 8:30 a.m. ET: delayed durable goods orders (October)
The U.S. Census Bureau’s Advance Report on Durable Goods (a delayed October release) is also scheduled for Dec. 23. [14]
Durable goods can influence the market’s read on industrial demand and capex momentum—another indirect input for “equipment cycle” narratives.
3) 10:00 a.m. ET: Consumer confidence, new home sales, and regional factory data
Several high-visibility releases are clustered later in the morning:
- Conference Board Consumer Confidence at 10:00 a.m. ET [15]
- New Home Sales at 10:00 a.m. ET [16]
- Richmond Fed manufacturing survey at 10:00 a.m. ET [17]
Even if these aren’t “semiconductor” datapoints, they can still move the broad tape—especially when holiday-week liquidity is lighter.
4) Holiday-week trading conditions: watch liquidity and market hours
U.S. markets are in a holiday-shortened stretch. The NYSE schedule shows an early close on Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025 (1:00 p.m. ET) and a full closure on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025. [18]
Lower volume conditions can make:
- pre-market and after-hours moves look “bigger” than they are,
- stop-driven swings more common,
- and sector ETFs (like semiconductor ETFs) more influential intraday.
5) The AMAT-specific checklist before the bell
Heading into Tuesday’s open, traders and longer-term investors will likely focus on:
- Any overnight semiconductor headlines tied to AI chip demand, large foundries, or restrictions that impact equipment shipments (a recurring theme for the sector). [19]
- Analyst-note follow-through: whether today’s widely circulated risk framing (China share/exposure to Intel) changes the tone of buy-side commentary. [20]
- Key price levels: AMAT’s recent high near $276 (Dec. 10) remains a reference point if momentum returns; near-term support is often watched around round numbers (e.g., $250) in a quiet tape. [21]
Bottom line for AMAT stock tonight
Applied Materials enters Tuesday with:
- a positive close and stable after-hours trade near $259, [22]
- a market narrative still anchored in AI-driven equipment spending, [23]
- but also ongoing investor sensitivity to China-related risk and customer exposure themes. [24]
The big near-term catalyst is not an AMAT press release—it’s the 8:30 a.m. ET macro data burst (GDP + durable goods), which could set the tone for semiconductors and high-beta tech heading into the rest of the shortened week. [25]
References
1. www.marketwatch.com, 2. www.nasdaq.com, 3. apnews.com, 4. www.marketwatch.com, 5. www.insidermonkey.com, 6. www.tipranks.com, 7. www.benzinga.com, 8. www.marketbeat.com, 9. www.globenewswire.com, 10. www.globenewswire.com, 11. www.reuters.com, 12. www.reuters.com, 13. www.bea.gov, 14. www.census.gov, 15. www.marketwatch.com, 16. www.newyorkfed.org, 17. www.newyorkfed.org, 18. www.nyse.com, 19. www.insidermonkey.com, 20. www.insidermonkey.com, 21. www.marketwatch.com, 22. www.marketwatch.com, 23. www.reuters.com, 24. www.insidermonkey.com, 25. www.bea.gov
