Old West Investment Management LLC Acquires New Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Old West Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 9,200 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,884,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% in 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 position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Up 6.1%

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $322.51 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $288.07 and its 200-day moving average is $231.21. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $344.60. The firm has a market cap of $255.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. Applied Materials’s revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.32 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Citi raised its price target sharply to $400 (from $250) and reiterated a Buy ahead of earnings, signaling increased analyst confidence and likely supporting buying interest. Citi Jumps Applied Materials (AMAT) Target Ahead of Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Pre-earnings research (Zacks) expects AMAT to beat estimates, highlighting the company’s revenue/earnings mix as favorable — a potential short-term catalyst that can lift the stock on an upside surprise. Applied Materials (AMAT) Expected to Beat Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks also flags AMAT as a strong momentum stock, which can attract momentum-driven flows into the shares ahead of a likely volatility event (earnings). Here’s Why Applied Materials (AMAT) is a Strong Momentum Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: An earnings release and investor event are scheduled for Feb. 12; this is the immediate catalyst and will drive intraday moves depending on results and guidance. Applied Materials (AMAT) to Release Earnings on Thursday
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest figures appear to be a data glitch (showing 0 shares and NaN changes), so there’s no clear short-covering signal from that dataset at present.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent coverage flagged a sharp pullback tied to export-control uncertainty despite robust AI-driven equipment demand — a reminder that geopolitical/export risks can quickly reverse sentiment if guidance or commentary raises red flags. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Down 11.6% After AI-Driven Equipment Demand Meets Export-Control Uncertainty

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and set a $325.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, January 12th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $285.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Twenty-four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $315.15.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,127,653.89. This represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.