Dundas Partners LLP Acquires 165,912 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Dundas Partners LLP raised its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 147.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 278,394 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 165,912 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises 4.0% of Dundas Partners LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Dundas Partners LLP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $56,998,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,920,984 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $7,125,265,000 after purchasing an additional 391,540 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 2.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 21,026,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,836,807,000 after buying an additional 407,282 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 72.5% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,483,183,000 after purchasing an additional 5,700,349 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 13.7% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,936,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,635,992,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075,525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at $1,604,002,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on AMAT. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 price target on Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $360.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 target price (up from $400.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $363.46.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market pieces highlight a renewed semiconductor opportunity in 2026, which benefits AMAT as a leading chip-equipment supplier; this underpins investor confidence in the company’s medium‑to‑long‑term demand. Semiconductor Opportunity Is Here
• Positive Sentiment: A recent feature argues AMAT is balancing near-term sector turbulence while maintaining a long‑term chip demand story — reinforcing buy‑and‑hold narratives for chip-capex exposure. Applied Materials Balances Sector Turbulence With Long Term Chip Demand Story
• Positive Sentiment: Technical commentary notes AMAT broke above its 20‑day moving average, signaling short‑term bullish momentum that can attract momentum traders. Applied Materials (AMAT) Recently Broke Out Above the 20-Day Moving Average
• Positive Sentiment: Context pieces point out AMAT has gained strongly over recent months (≈+33% over three months), showing momentum that can support share prices when markets stabilize. AMAT Climbs 33.4% in 3 Months: Time to Buy, Sell or Hold the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group initiated coverage with a “hold” rating — neither bullish nor bearish but may limit upside from fresh upbeat upgrades. Tickerreport: Erste Group Starts Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent short‑interest data reported as zeros/NaN appear erroneous; no clear signal from short sellers right now (data should be treated cautiously).
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market pressure: Nasdaq weakness and falling futures are dragging high‑beta tech and semicap names lower, pressuring AMAT despite company strengths. Live Nasdaq Composite: Markets Buckle Under Pressure With No Relief in Sight
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical risk and rising oil amid Middle East conflict are lifting energy prices and weighing on risk assets ahead of a key jobs report — a near‑term headwind for AMAT. Stock Futures Fall, Oil Jumps as Middle East War Continues; Key Jobs Report on Deck

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at $10,778,624.78. The trade was a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 in the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $324.74 on Monday. 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 has a market cap of $257.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.24, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.65. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.74 and a 1 year high of $395.95. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $326.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $256.82.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. As a group, equities research 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. 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 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.