Courier Capital LLC Sells 1,609 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Courier Capital LLC reduced its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 31.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,452 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,609 shares during the period. Courier Capital LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $887,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Grandfield & Dodd LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $55,180,000 after buying an additional 17,397 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Applied Materials by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,101,772 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $635,057,000 after buying an additional 145,050 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in Applied Materials by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 96,712 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,801,000 after buying an additional 17,288 shares during the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan raised its position in Applied Materials by 82.2% in the 3rd quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 26,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,512,000 after buying an additional 12,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $1,531,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results and DRAM strength — Applied beat estimates (non-GAAP EPS $2.38 vs $2.21) and reported record DRAM revenue now ~34% of Semiconductor Systems revenue, supporting a stronger memory-driven growth outlook. Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Is Betting Billions on These 3 AI Stocks. Here’s Why Smart Money Sees AI Dominance
• Positive Sentiment: Tesla terafab participation — Applied joined Tesla’s Terafab project, a potential validation of AMAT’s equipment roadmap and a source of future equipment orders if Tesla scales fabs. Applied Materials Just Joined the Tesla Terafab Project. Does That Make AMAT Stock a Buy?
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile bullish endorsements — Jim Cramer publicly called AMAT “a great buy,” and buy-side interest (e.g., Coatue) draws retail and institutional attention that can support momentum. Jim Cramer on Applied Materials: “It’s Not a Good Buy, It’s a Great Buy”
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street and sector tailwinds — Analysts and industry write-ups expect double-digit EPS growth next quarter and highlight semiconductor/AI-driven demand (especially for memory/DRAM), which benefits AMAT’s equipment backlog and margin outlook. What to Expect From Applied Materials’ Q2 2026 Earnings Report
• Positive Sentiment: Industry buy lists and thematic coverage — AMAT appears on semiconductor/AI-themed buy lists (Zacks, industry commentaries) as investors favor companies exposed to AI, ML and memory demand. 3 Stocks to Buy From the Prospering Semiconductor Industry
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings date set — Applied will report fiscal Q2 2026 results on May 14; the event is a clear near-term catalyst but outcome/tone will determine direction. Applied Materials to Report Fiscal Second Quarter 2026 Results on May 14, 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Speculative upside narratives — Coverage arguing AMAT could be a trillion-dollar company candidate is bullish headline-grabbing speculation but depends on sustained margin and end-market expansion. Applied Materials (AMAT): Analyzing the Next Stock to Breach the Trillion Dollar Barrier
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data anomaly — a report shows a “large increase” but lists zero shares and NaN changes; likely a data glitch rather than actionable short-squeeze signal. (source: short interest report)
• Neutral Sentiment: Misc. buy/sell write-ups — Multiple “is AMAT a buy?” pieces and commentaries summarize bull cases; they reinforce investor interest but add no new company-specific catalysts. Is Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) A Good Stock To Buy Now?

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total value of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup increased their price target on Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Mizuho increased their price target on Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. KGI Securities raised Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Applied Materials from $350.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $432.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.29.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $417.00 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.71 and a 1 year high of $420.50. The firm has a market cap of $330.94 billion, a PE ratio of 42.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $366.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $302.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The firm had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.38 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This is an increase 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 payout ratio is 18.83%.

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.