Evergreen Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Evergreen Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 12.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,892 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares during the quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% during the third quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 6,306 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,291,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 29.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 3,145 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $644,000 after purchasing an additional 709 shares during the last quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $989,000. 4WEALTH Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the third quarter. 4WEALTH Advisors Inc. now owns 4,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $854,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peoples Financial Services CORP. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 17.0% during the third quarter. Peoples Financial Services CORP. now owns 3,974 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $814,000 after buying an additional 576 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: TSMC’s $52–$56B 2026 capex guidance creates near‑term, high‑certainty demand for equipment suppliers like Applied Materials — MarketBeat explains that TSMC must buy new, specialized deposition and other tools (benefitting AMAT) to move to 2nm production. The $56 Billion Draft: Follow TSMC’s CapEx Stream
• Positive Sentiment: Applied topped out at a new all‑time high as investors front‑run TSMC-driven equipment demand; KeyBanc says AMAT can push higher in 2026. Applied Materials Stock Just Hit a New All-Time High. Should You Buy AMAT Here?
• Positive Sentiment: Several sell‑side upgrades (Barclays, RBC, Stifel and others) have raised ratings/targets and highlighted AMAT’s exposure to AI capex and HBM growth, supporting upward price momentum. Applied Materials, AEI Industries, MKS in focus as KeyBanc ups targets
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays upgrade specifically cited AI‑driven fab spending as a catalyst, which helped spur intraday gains. Barclays upgrades Applied Materials (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: AMAT’s HBM (hybrid bonding) business hit $1.5B in FY25 and is positioned to double as memory/AI packaging ramps — a structural growth driver cited by analysts. Applied Materials FY25 HBM Revenues Hit $1.5B: A New Growth Driver?
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary offers trade ideas and allocation strategies (e.g., “drafting the titan”) that favor equipment vendors instead of chip designers — useful context but not a direct company update. Here Is A Smart Way To Invest In AMAT Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: AMAT is due to report its next quarter soon; analysts expect a single‑digit EPS decrease, so near‑term guidance and orders will be watched closely for confirmation of the TSMC-driven rebound. Here’s What to Expect From Applied Materials’ Next Earnings Report
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and positioning risk: AMAT is trading near its 52‑week high with elevated multiples (PE/PEG), so any hiccup in order timing, customer pushouts or margin guidance could trigger a pullback. Here is What to Know Beyond Why Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) is a Trending Stock

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $310.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, January 9th. Mizuho set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, January 9th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Twenty-three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of Applied Materials 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 sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,127,653.89. This trade represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.5%

Applied Materials stock opened at $327.01 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $259.30 billion, a PE ratio of 37.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $261.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $218.00. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $331.00.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

About Applied Materials

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.