Bailard Inc. Has $6.07 Million Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Bailard Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 29,663 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,877 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $6,073,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 150.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 represents a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total value of $952,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898 over the last 90 days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Applied Materials from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $290.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $286.89.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Needham raised its price target sharply to $390 (from $260) and maintained a Buy — a sizable, high-profile upgrade that supports upside for the shares. Needham raises AMAT price target
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest in AMAT has fallen significantly, reducing near-term bearish pressure and making upward moves easier to sustain. Short interest decrease
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs and other banks are lifting price targets across large tech names, a backdrop that can lift AMAT via sector re-rating and inclusion in bullish analyst notes. Goldman Sachs raises targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces are reframing AMAT as an AI-toolchain winner (AI-driven beats shifting the investment narrative), which supports higher long-term demand but leaves timing and magnitude open to debate. AI-fueled narrative analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparisons with ASML highlight AMAT’s broader exposure (HBM, NAND, packaging) versus ASML’s EUV specialization — a diversification story that may appeal to investors preferring multi-node exposure over a single-technology play. AMAT vs ASML comparison
• Neutral Sentiment: Several media rundowns reiterate AMAT’s Q3 positioning relative to other semiconductor-equipment names — useful context but not an immediate catalyst. Q3 Rundown
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation/“too late” concerns after a ~72% one-year surge — several articles question whether gains are already priced in, which could cap upside for risk-averse investors or trigger profit-taking. Valuation concerns
• Positive Sentiment: Media pieces urging investors to “ignore the China drama” and buy AMAT emphasize durable end-market demand (AI, memory), supporting the bullish thesis. Buy thesis coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Broad “spotting winners” lists include AMAT as a candidate among semiconductor-manufacturing plays — helpful for sentiment but not a direct fundamental catalyst. Spotting winners

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $325.24 on Thursday. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $331.00. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $266.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $220.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $257.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.47, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $6.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 24.67%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.