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The latest trading session saw Applied Materials (AMAT) ending at $254.97, denoting a +1.39% adjustment from its last day's close. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.02%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 1.09%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq appreciated by 1.18%.

The maker of chipmaking equipment's stock has climbed by 9.35% in the past month, exceeding the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 8.46% and the S&P 500's gain of 4.44%.

Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Applied Materials in its upcoming earnings disclosure. It is anticipated that the company will report an EPS of $2.01, marking a 5.79% rise compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $6.67 billion, up 3.8% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $8.33 per share and revenue of $26.91 billion. These totals would mark changes of +3.48% and +1.48%, respectively, from last year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Applied Materials. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the company's business and profitability.

Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the past month, there's been no change in the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. As of now, Applied Materials holds a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

From a valuation perspective, Applied Materials is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 30.19. This expresses a discount compared to the average Forward P/E of 32.09 of its industry.

Investors should also note that AMAT has a PEG ratio of 3.28 right now. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 3.26 as of yesterday's close.

The Semiconductor Equipment - Wafer Fabrication industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 47, which puts it in the top 19% of all 250+ industries.

The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.

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