Groupama Asset Managment Cuts Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Groupama Asset Managment cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 38.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,228 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 7,650 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,504,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 26.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $590,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the period. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 30.1% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,747,000 after acquiring an additional 3,469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthspire Advisors LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 4.1% during the second quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 8,754 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,603,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock opened at $357.44 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $283.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.74 and a 1 year high of $395.95. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $339.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $267.01.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.83%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director owned 28,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,778,624.78. The trade was a 12.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied raised its quarterly dividend by 15%, marking a continuation of multi‑year dividend growth and signaling confidence in cash flow and the AI/memory tool cycle. This directly supports shareholder returns and boosts investor sentiment. Applied Materials Lifts Dividend As AI Investment And Cash Returns Converge
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying fundamentals remain supportive: recent quarterly beats and company guidance (Q2 FY26 EPS range) reinforce expectations that AMAT will benefit from AI-driven capital expenditure across logic and memory chipmakers. This is a core reason investors are bidding the stock higher. 3 Reasons Investors Watch Applied Materials (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Sector peers (e.g., Lam Research) are reporting rising systems revenue and benefiting from the AI capex cycle; that peer strength supports the thesis that equipment suppliers like AMAT can sustain higher order activity into 2026. Can Lam Research’s Systems Business Sustain Growth Amid AI Capex Boom?
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer‑term tooling developments (ASML High‑NA EUV adoption by imec) underpin next‑generation chip roadmaps, which is positive for equipment demand but is a multi‑year story rather than an immediate catalyst for AMAT. Belgium’s imec secures rare ASML High NA EUV tool
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest data for AMAT in mid‑March shows anomalous zero/NaN figures across filings, making it unreliable as a directional signal right now. Investors should treat those prints with caution. (internal reporting)
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market moves — including commodity swings and mixed reactions to semiconductor earnings (e.g., Micron) — add macro volatility that can blunt sector rallies even when company‑specific news is positive. Dow Jones Futures: Oil Backs Off $100; Micron Skids Despite Blowout Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: AMAT has run up substantially over recent months (large percentage gains), raising the risk of a near‑term pullback or profit‑taking; valuation metrics (higher P/E) mean the stock is more sensitive to any slowdown in capex or weaker guidance. 3 Reasons Investors Watch Applied Materials (AMAT)

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Erste Group Bank initiated coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and raised their price target for the company from $180.00 to $400.00 in a report on Sunday, January 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $432.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $363.46.

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.