Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac Invests $18.38 Million in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 71,513 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $18,378,000. Applied Materials makes up 1.4% of Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $231,000. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 3,248 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $835,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,000. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $173,788,000. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $828,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $470.13.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: CEO Gary Dickerson said the semiconductor industry is experiencing its strongest period ever, with AI driving powerful long-term demand for chip equipment. CNBC article
• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an Overweight rating and raised its price target to $575, signaling continued confidence in Applied Materials’ growth outlook. Benzinga report on Applied Materials analyst target raise
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials’ recent partnership and packaging initiatives with Broadcom and SCREEN Semiconductor Solutions are being viewed as incremental wins for its AI chip packaging strategy. Applied Materials partners with Broadcom on advanced chip packaging technologies for AI systems
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s latest earnings beat expectations and it raised third-quarter guidance, reinforcing the view that demand remains strong. Applied Materials is up after raising Q3 outlook and expanding AI packaging alliance
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Judy Bruner and CAO Adam Sanders both sold small amounts of stock, but the transactions were relatively modest and do not appear to change the broader investment story. Insider trade filing for Judy Bruner

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $449.68 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $153.47 and a fifty-two week high of $462.40. 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 market capitalization of $357.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.66. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $395.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $332.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total transaction of $116,370.96. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,858,461.60. The trade was a 5.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,128 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total transaction of $507,600.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 26,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,944,800. This trade represents a 4.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.