Arvest Bank Trust Division Sells 8,985 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Arvest Bank Trust Division trimmed its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 18.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,567 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 8,985 shares during the quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at $1,604,002,000. Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,409,320,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 72.5% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,483,183,000 after acquiring an additional 5,700,349 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 1,704.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,439,598 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $499,483,000 after purchasing an additional 2,304,369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 417.3% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,732,015 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $317,053,000 after purchasing an additional 1,397,217 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $470.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. Susquehanna upgraded Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $180.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. Finally, B. Riley Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. Twenty-eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $361.03.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Earnings beat and bullish market reaction — AMAT pushed to a new one‑year high after reporting quarterly results that topped estimates and prompted buying interest. Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Hits New 1-Year High After Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Major analyst price-target increases — Cantor Fitzgerald raised its target to $470 (from $425), signaling higher modelled upside and boosting investor confidence. Applied Materials price target raised to $470 from $425 at Cantor Fitzgerald
• Positive Sentiment: Additional target raises — Needham and other outlets posted higher targets (e.g., Needham to $440), reinforcing the analyst momentum behind the stock. Applied Materials price target raised to $440 from $390 at Needham
• Positive Sentiment: Upgrades and buy reiterations — Several firms upgraded or reiterated buy calls (Summit Insights upgrade; B. Riley reiterated buy; RBC added a buy), adding analyst support to the rally. Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Upgraded at Summit Insights Applied Materials’ (AMAT) Buy Rating Reiterated at B. Riley Securities Applied Materials (AMAT) Gets a Buy from RBC Capital
• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory/strategic clarity — Reports say AMAT cleared a U.S. probe and a refocused Samsung EPIC partnership, which reduces regulatory overhang and supports growth prospects. Applied Materials Clears US Probe As Samsung EPIC Partnership Refocuses Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Sector and thematic support — Industry pieces highlight AMAT as a key play on memory and AI-related capex, drawing thematic investor interest into memory/equipment names. Applied Materials Shows Why Memory Stocks Are the Next Big AI Buying Opportunity
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed chip‑sector context — Coverage notes the semiconductor group is mixed (AMAT and TSMC up, NVDA and Intel down); AMAT’s strength may reflect stock‑specific drivers more than broad sector momentum. Chip Stocks Split: AMAT and TSMC Gain While NVDA and Intel Retreat
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data appears erroneous — a February short‑interest entry shows zeros/NaN and provides no actionable signal; treat as unreliable until corrected.

Applied Materials Trading Up 8.1%

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $354.91 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $296.94 and a 200-day moving average of $238.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $376.32. The firm has a market cap of $281.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.33, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.83%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total value of $155,617.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,127,653.89. This trade represents a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.