Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Bought by Diversify Advisory Services LLC

Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 37.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,439 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,753 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Applied Materials by 225.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,046,057,000 after acquiring an additional 10,305,182 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 42.6% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 10,978,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,247,838,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,730 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 19.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,552,132 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,160,443,000 after purchasing an additional 1,681,911 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 617.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after purchasing an additional 7,856,576 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,051,063.65. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 in the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $399.20 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $132.80 and a twelve month high of $407.29. The stock has a market cap of $316.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $351.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $289.19.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.38 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on Applied Materials from $360.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. KGI Securities raised shares of Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $367.04.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Breakthrough tool launch — Applied announced new 2nm GAA deposition tools and broader chipmaking systems aimed at next‑gen AI logic chips; market reacted strongly to the product cycle and AI demand implications. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Price target and ratings lift — Susquehanna raised its AMAT price target to $500 and moved to a positive rating, and other brokers have reiterated buys or a “moderate buy” consensus, providing analyst‑driven upside. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerage confirmations — Bernstein reaffirmed a buy and coverage summaries show an overall constructive analyst stance, supporting investor confidence. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: DRAM business gains traction — Coverage notes strong DRAM demand driven by AI and key partnerships, but cautions that rising competition could limit the durability of the surge. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest data flagged but appears to be a data anomaly — a report showed a jump in “short interest” figures that resolve to zero shares (NaN/inconsistent), so no clear bearish signal from shorts. (data entry 4/10)
• Neutral Sentiment: Market context — broader market moves (e.g., macro headlines and risk‑on sentiment) have amplified momentum in semiconductors; useful but not AMAT‑specific. Article Title

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.