Assetmark Inc. Acquires 31,759 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 344,377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 31,759 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $70,508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth $31,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 3.4%

Applied Materials stock opened at $328.46 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $260.71 billion, a PE ratio of 37.84, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.70. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $344.60. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $293.46 and its 200 day moving average is $235.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.19. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $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, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors 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 yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings and revenue beat — AMAT reported $2.38 EPS and $7.01B revenue, topping consensus and demonstrating healthy margins and profitability that underpin investor confidence. Applied Materials (AMAT) Beats Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Strong forward guidance — management set Q2 FY2026 EPS guidance (2.440–2.840) and revenue targets above Street expectations, signaling continued demand for semiconductor equipment driven by AI processors. This guidance is the key driver of the after‑hours rally. Applied Materials forecasts second-quarter sales above estimates
• Positive Sentiment: AI and industry positioning — analysts and commentary point to accelerating AI/HPC capex (DRAM, advanced logic, packaging) and recurring service revenue as structural growth drivers; several firms have raised targets and reiterated Buy ratings ahead of the print. How to Read Applied Materials Earnings: What Signals Move the Stock?
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnerships — Samsung agreed to join AMAT’s new $5B EPIC R&D center, reinforcing customer relationships and R&D scale that support long-term demand and product leadership. Applied Materials Announces Samsung Electronics Will Join the New, Multibillion-Dollar EPIC Center
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory closure reduces uncertainty — the DOJ and SEC have closed related investigations without action, which removes a material legal overhang and clarifies near-term risk. That reduced uncertainty likely helped investor reaction even though a settlement was paid. Applied Materials Announces First Quarter 2026 Results
• Negative Sentiment: $252.5M export settlement — AMAT agreed to pay $252.5M to the U.S. Department of Commerce to resolve alleged export-control violations for certain shipments to China (Nov 2020–Jul 2022). The payment is a one‑time hit and raises compliance/controls questions, though management frames the resolution as in shareholders’ best interest. Applied Materials to pay $252 million to resolve illegal chip exports, US says

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 completion of 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 position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $275.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $273.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $315.15.

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.