Midwest Professional Planners LTD. Reduces Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Midwest Professional Planners LTD. reduced its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,237 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for approximately 2.0% of Midwest Professional Planners LTD.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Midwest Professional Planners LTD.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $8,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 617.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after buying an additional 7,856,576 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 25,824.4% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $86,610,000 after buying an additional 3,357,167 shares during the period. Finally, Coatue Management LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 78.7% during the fourth quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 5,984,332 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,537,913,000 after buying an additional 2,635,284 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price target on Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Monday, May 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $593.84.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Management commentary suggested AI-driven semiconductor equipment spending could stay elevated for years, strengthening confidence in Applied Materials’ multiyear demand outlook. Applied Materials CEO Just Reinforced the AI Investment Thesis. How to Play AMAT Stock Here.
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho raised its price target on AMAT, citing strong demand commentary and expecting EPS growth of more than 36% over the next year. Mizuho Raises PT on Applied Materials (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials was highlighted as a key AI infrastructure and “picks-and-shovels” play, with articles arguing the stock could continue trending higher alongside AI hardware spending. Applied Materials: The Picks-and-Shovels Play in an AI Era Will Continue to Trend Higher
• Positive Sentiment: Reports also pointed to a 10-year AI packaging partnership with TSMC and a Buy rating from Bernstein, both of which support the bull case for long-term demand. Applied Materials (AMAT) Lands 10 Year TSMC AI Packaging Partnership Applied Materials (AMAT) Gets a Buy from Bernstein
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary notes the stock has already run sharply over the past six months, so investors may be weighing whether much of the AI optimism is already priced in. 2 Reasons to Watch AMAT and 1 to Stay Cautious
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader semiconductor strength and lower inflation also helped sentiment across AI hardware names, including AMAT, KLA, and Teradyne. Applied Materials, KLA Corporation, and Teradyne Shares Skyrocket, What You Need To Know

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $579.43 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $460.04 billion, a PE ratio of 54.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $154.46 and a 12-month high of $739.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $528.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $410.12.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.39 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly 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. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

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.