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Stock Comparison · Structural lead, mixed market

Applied Materials vs Motorola Solutions: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

Applied Materials holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across growth and stability. Motorola Solutions still has the edge on stability, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. On the market side, Applied Materials is in better shape — its trend is intact while Motorola Solutions's trend has broken down. That puts structure and market broadly in agreement — Applied Materials's lead looks more confirmed than conflicted.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Both peer scores are relative to the S&P 500 universe, making them directly comparable.

Updated 2026-05-17

The clearest separation starts in growth, with profitability adding a second layer of support. Applied Materials, Inc. leads by 9 points on the overall comparison score.

Trajectory Similarity
0.74
Similar
Peer-set rank: #5
within Applied Materials, Inc.'s functional peer set

This pair is matched through long-term financial trajectory similarity within the selected peer universe.

This level of similarity signals a strong structural match, even though some dimensions still separate the two companies.

Most of the shared profile comes through revenue stability and capital structure.

Similarity drivers
revenue stabilitycapital structure
How to read the score
0.85–1.00 · Very similar0.70–0.84 · Similar0.55–0.69 · Moderately similarbelow 0.55 · Loose match
Peer-Relative Score
AMAT
Applied Materials, Inc.
53
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: S&P 500
vs
MSI
Motorola Solutions, Inc.
44
Peer-Score
Signal qualitylow
Peer basis: S&P 500

Scores reflect position relative to comparable companies with similar long-term financial trajectories.

The largest gaps do not all point in the same direction.

Dimension spread: AMAT vs MSI Profitability 65 30 Stability 32 86 Valuation 43 52 Growth 71 9 AMAT MSI
Gap Ranking
#1 Growth +62
#2 Stability +54
#3 Profitability +35
#4 Valuation +9
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for AMAT and MSI Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer AMATMSI Relative valuation Structural strength

Applied Materials, Inc. looks stronger, but the price setup still looks more supportive for Motorola Solutions, Inc..

Valuation position uses peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Entry today — historical context

Where AMAT and MSI each sit in their own 5-year price and valuation history.

BASED ON 5-YEAR HISTORY AMAT Elevated · above norm 0th 50th 100th 30 pct gap MSI Neutral · below norm 0th 50th 100th 99th 69th
Today MSI sits in the upper-middle of its own 5-year history (69th percentile), while AMAT sits higher in its own history (99th). Within each stock's own 5-year context, MSI is at a historically more favourable entry position than AMAT. This reflects entry timing, not which company is structurally stronger — peer-relative analysis is a separate question addressed above.

Describes historical entry positioning only. Descriptive — not investment advice.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Growth
Applied Materials, Inc. ranks near the top of the group on growth; Motorola Solutions, Inc. sits in the weaker half.
Stability
On stability, the gap still runs the same way: Motorola Solutions, Inc. sits near the top of the group, while Applied Materials, Inc. remains in the weaker half.
Growth — Dominant Gap
AMAT
71
MSI
9
Gap+62in favour of AMAT

Earnings growth is one contributing factor within the growth lead.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

There is still a strong counterforce in stability, so the lead stays clear without becoming a sweep.

What this means for the comparison

The growth edge is decisive, even though current pricing and stability still lean somewhat toward Motorola Solutions, Inc..

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the AMAT vs MSI comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

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Other comparisons with conflicting dimension signals

Explore how AMAT and MSI each compare against other companies in their peer groups.

Rule-based, descriptive analysis only. Derived from peer percentile dimensions. Not investment advice. Peer groups are determined algorithmically based on structural similarity — not by sector classification alone.

How AssetNext Peer Scores Work

AssetNext scores reflect each company's structural position within its functional peer group — not a ranking against all stocks simultaneously. Peers are identified by similarity across eight financial dimensions, including revenue growth trajectory, margin structure, capital intensity, and earnings stability. A score of 75 means the company ranks in the top quartile within its own peer group, not the entire market.

Four dimension scores drive the overall peer score: Growth (revenue trajectory and expansion dynamics), Quality (margin structure and capital efficiency), Valuation (peer-relative pricing on standard multiples), and Stability (earnings consistency and financial predictability). Each dimension is scored 0–100 relative to the peer group, then combined into an overall peer score using equal weighting.

Because scores are peer-relative, the same company can have slightly different scores in different index universes. On comparison pages, both companies are shown within their shared peer universe wherever possible — so the scores are directly comparable. The peer basis is stated on each score card.

Scores are recalculated periodically as underlying financial data is updated. All analysis is descriptive and rule-based — AssetNext describes structural realities and never issues buy, sell or hold recommendations.