GSA Capital Partners LLP Decreases Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

GSA Capital Partners LLP lowered its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 59.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,771 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,614 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $363,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AMAT. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 150.0% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $33,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AMAT. Bank of America upped their target price on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group set a $430.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Summit Insights upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research 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 six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $363.46.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 outperformance and upgraded outlook drove conviction that demand for advanced-node and packaging tools remains strong — management beat estimates, gave solid Q2 guidance and highlighted 2nm/advanced‑packaging revenue drivers. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Up 5.3% After Strong Q1, Export Deal And 2nm Push
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst bullishness: Morgan Stanley raised its price target (to $432) and other brokers have lifted targets and ratings recently, supporting upside expectations vs. the market run. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Industry positioning: Coverage notes AMAT is scaling up exposure to logic, DRAM/HBM and hybrid‑bonding/packaging tailwinds driven by AI, which supports multi‑year bookings and margins. AMAT Scales Up Logic, DRAM & Advanced Packaging
• Neutral Sentiment: SPIE presentation and fund commentary highlighted technical innovation and that AMAT outperformed some mutual‑fund portfolios, useful for medium‑term narrative but unlikely to move price alone. Applied Materials Presents at SPIE 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reports this week show anomalous/zero and NaN values — the published figures look unreliable and shouldn’t be treated as a clear bearish signal without confirmation from official exchanges.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CAO Adam Sanders (and other insiders) disclosed share sales (~534 shares), which can weigh on near‑term sentiment even if routine. CAO Adam Sanders Form 4 TipRanks: Insider Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Sector/peer weakness: Today’s pullback in several semiconductor-equipment and chip names is pressuring AMAT alongside profit‑taking after a large one‑year rally. MSN: Shares Falling — What You Need to Know

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,778,624.78. This trade represents a 12.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 10,112 shares of company stock worth $3,660,532 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 4.9%

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $375.72 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $314.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $248.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $298.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $395.95.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

Applied Materials Company 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.