Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by USS Investment Management Ltd

USS Investment Management Ltd trimmed its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.0% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 140,884 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 12,203 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $48,132,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $19,731,523,000 after acquiring an additional 330,197 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after acquiring an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Applied Materials by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,470,835 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,947,891,000 after purchasing an additional 373,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $2,858,543,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Up 4.1%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $723.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $486.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $384.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $739.67. The stock has a market cap of $574.03 billion, a PE ratio of 67.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 19.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $540.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Erste Group Bank raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $553.56.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: KeyBanc, Cantor Fitzgerald, and Bank of America all turned more bullish on AMAT, with multiple price-target hikes and fresh upside calls ahead of earnings, reinforcing the view that demand for chip-making equipment remains strong. Why Applied Materials Shares Are Surging Monday
• Positive Sentiment: The stock has been one of the biggest winners in the semiconductor space, with June marking its best monthly rally since 1975 as AI infrastructure spending lifted estimates and investor sentiment. Stock Of The Day: Is This The Top For Applied Materials?
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group raised its FY2026 and FY2027 earnings estimates for Applied Materials, signaling confidence that earnings growth can continue beyond the current year. Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles note the stock is technically very extended and “overbought,” which suggests momentum is strong but also raises the risk of a near-term pullback after the huge run-up. Stock Of The Day: Is This The Top For Applied Materials?
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials was also added to the Russell Top 50 Index, which can boost visibility and passive fund ownership, though the impact is more about flows than fundamentals. Applied Materials (AMAT) Joins Russell Top 50 After Leaving Value Indexes

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total value of $6,335,300.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 346,642 shares in the company, valued at $219,608,106.26. This represents a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.