D.A. Davidson & CO. Sells 3,686 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

D.A. Davidson & CO. lowered its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 64,326 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,686 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $16,531,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Godsey & Gibb Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,298 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,227 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,096 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 2.9%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $404.86 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $144.71 and a one year high of $420.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $367.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $303.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $321.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.44, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.64.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.38 earnings per share. The business’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. As a group, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. 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. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.83%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. B. Riley Financial increased their target price on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $485.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. DZ Bank raised Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.29.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Advantest joined Applied’s EPIC platform and opened an Innovation Center on Applied’s Silicon Valley R&D campus—this tightens front‑end process engineering with back‑end test capabilities, which could accelerate commercialization of complex AI and HPC chips and strengthen Applied’s competitive ecosystem over time. Is Advantest’s EPIC Tie-Up Reshaping the Long-Term Investment Case for Applied Materials (AMAT)?
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group upgraded AMAT from “hold” to “buy,” a near‑term bullish catalyst that can support sentiment and attract buyers at pullbacks. Erste Group upgrade (Finviz)
• Neutral Sentiment: ETF reconstitution commentary notes Applied’s strong free‑cash‑flow profile could keep it visible to thematic/FCF‑focused ETFs—possible gradual inflows but not an immediate driver of today’s move. Metal, Chips, & Cash: Q1 ‘26 Additions to VictoryShares GFLW
• Neutral Sentiment: MarketWatch flags AMAT’s underperformance versus competitors on the day—useful context on relative strength but not a standalone structural change. Applied Materials Inc. stock underperforms Monday when compared to competitors
• Negative Sentiment: News pieces and headlines point to profit‑taking after a strong run and broader tech weakness as the proximate cause of today’s decline—investors appear to be trimming positions despite solid recent earnings. Why Applied Materials (AMAT) shares are falling today
• Negative Sentiment: Market coverage (Zacks/Yahoo) reiterates the same intraday dip narrative—confirming the move is market‑driven rather than due to new company‑specific bad news. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Dips While Market Gains: Key Facts

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.