AMAT vs CRM: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Applied Materials, Inc. and Salesforce, Inc. β fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-09-24.
Applied Materials, Inc. Β· Technology
$474.38
-3.5% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C
High Quality
VS
Salesforce, Inc. Β· Technology
$236.42
+11.6% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade B
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
CRM has more upside to fair value
(+11.6%).
These are model outputs β not personalized investment advice.
See all research β
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
AMAT |
CRM |
| Current Price |
$474.38 |
$236.42 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$457.95 |
$263.88 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-3.5%
|
+11.6%
|
| Market Cap |
$376.6B |
$193.6B |
| Forward P/E |
β
|
β
|
| EV / EBITDA |
33.1x
|
14.4x
|
| Price / Sales |
12.2x
|
4.4x
|
| Price / FCF |
67.0x
|
12.8x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+24.8%
|
+10.8%
|
| Gross Margin |
49.4%
|
77.3%
|
| Operating Margin |
30.5%
|
21.4%
|
| Return on Equity |
40.4%
|
20.2%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0.42% |
0.73% |
| FCF Yield |
1.49%
|
7.82%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Applied Materials is the largest supplier of wafer fabrication equipment, providing deposition, etch, ion implantation, and process-control tools alongside a growing Applied Global Services aftermarket business to semiconductor manufacturers worldwide. The business quality is high: TTM gross margin of 49.4%, TTM operating margin of 30.5%, TTM net margin of 30.1%, and ROE of 40.4% reflect a durablβ¦
Salesforce is the leading enterprise customer relationship management platform, spanning Sales, Service, Platform, Marketing, Commerce, Tableau, MuleSoft, and Slack under the Customer 360 umbrella, with 83,334 employees and a business that converts $53.65 of revenue per share into $18.48 of free cash flow per share. Business quality is high: TTM gross margin of 77.3%, TTM operating margin of 21.4β¦
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
AMAT |
CRM |
| Zone Low |
$343.46 |
$197.91 |
| Zone High |
$389.26 |
$224.30 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
No
|