Formidable Asset Management LLC Cuts Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Formidable Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 49.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,588 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 4,485 shares during the period. Formidable Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,568,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 30.1% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,747,000 after purchasing an additional 3,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 59.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $77,383,000 after purchasing an additional 157,426 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $626.84 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $154.46 and a one year high of $669.22. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $473.54 and a 200 day moving average of $378.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51. The company has a market capitalization of $497.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.86, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total transaction of $5,092,941.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. HSBC began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $517.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $518.19.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials introduced new systems for DRAM and advanced packaging, expanding its role in AI chip manufacturing and potentially boosting future demand. Applied Materials Introduces New Systems to Accelerate DRAM and Advanced Packaging for AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts said AMAT’s event highlighted strong opportunities in DRAM and advanced packaging, reinforcing the company’s AI-driven growth narrative. Applied Materials’ event focuses on DRAM, and advanced packaging: analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary remains constructive, with analysts still confident in Applied Materials’ strong competitive position. AMAT stock gets thumbs up from Wall Street – analysts remain confident about Applied Materials’ strong market position
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage suggests the stock may be looking expensive after its recent rally, which could limit near-term upside even if the long-term AI story stays intact. Applied Materials stock looks pricey—can AI demand justify the rally?
• Neutral Sentiment: One analysis noted that Applied Materials’ aggressive investment strategy may pressure cash flow in the near term, even though it supports longer-term growth. Can AMAT’s Investment Strategy Lift Future Cash Flow Growth?

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.