Trust Point Inc. Purchases Shares of 2,840 Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Trust Point Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,840 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $581,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. IFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 1,008.1% during the 2nd quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 36,156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $6,619,000 after acquiring an additional 32,893 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 23.0% in the 2nd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 12,643 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,315,000 after purchasing an additional 2,363 shares in the last quarter. Sienna Gestion lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 10.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 113,221 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $18,924,000 after purchasing an additional 10,468 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 31.8% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 145,277 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,601,000 after purchasing an additional 35,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 13,360.6% during the second quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 694,431 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $127,129,000 after purchasing an additional 689,272 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $256.41 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $203.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.74 and a twelve month high of $276.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $240.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $203.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm had revenue of $6.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.32 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. DZ Bank upgraded Applied Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Bank of America upgraded Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, B. Riley increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $246.78.

Applied Materials News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Materials this week:

• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley raised its price target to $305 from $270, signaling stronger upside expectations and supporting near‑term buying interest. Applied Materials price target raised to $305 from $270 at B Riley
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho published a bullish forecast calling for strong price appreciation for AMAT, which adds institutional credibility to the rally and can drive inflows from model-driven funds. Mizuho Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Seeking Alpha coverage upgraded AMAT to a “buy”, highlighting AI and semiconductor tailwinds — another endorsement that can influence retail and advisory flows. Applied Materials: Upgrading To Buy Amid AI And Semiconductor Tailwinds
• Positive Sentiment: Feature pieces (e.g., Yahoo UK) frame Applied as central to building the “AI backbone” — reinforcing the narrative that AMAT benefits from multi-year capex cycles in AI datacenter chips. Applied Materials: Engineering the AI Backbone
• Positive Sentiment: Consumer-facing coverage notes the stock is trading up and outlines the drivers (earnings beat, guidance, and AI demand), which can amplify momentum among traders. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Trades Up, Here Is Why
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term performance retrospectives (e.g., 247WallStreet) highlight AMAT’s historical compounding, which supports buy-and-hold investor sentiment. The Chip Equipment Maker That Quietly Turned $1,000 Into $11,280 in a Decade
• Neutral Sentiment: Aggregated analyst forecasts and research reports summarize consensus estimates and scenarios; useful for positioning but not a single catalyst. Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) Stock Forecasts
• Negative Sentiment: A cautionary piece notes the bull case could change if AI demand weakens despite a steady dividend, highlighting downside risk if end-market cycles soften. The Bull Case For Applied Materials (AMAT) Could Change Following Steady Dividend Amid AI Weakness

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total value of $155,617.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,127,653.89. The trade was a 12.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total value of $952,960.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Profile

Applied Materials, Inc is a U.S.-based supplier of equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductor chips, flat panel displays and other advanced materials. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, the company designs and sells capital equipment and related technologies that enable production of integrated circuits, display panels and materials used across the electronics supply chain.

Applied Materials’ offerings include process equipment and factory software that support critical steps in device fabrication, such as deposition, etch, implantation, inspection and metrology, as well as systems for packaging and advanced heterogeneous integration.