New York State Teachers Retirement System Raises Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 631,762 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,700 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.08% of Applied Materials worth $215,930,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Private Wealth Management Group LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 531 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $181,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 2,082 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $712,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,908 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,031 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $265,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hoxton Planning & Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC now owns 2,208 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $567,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total value of $6,335,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 346,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $219,608,106.26. This trade represents a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is being highlighted as a key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending, with coverage emphasizing its role in DRAM and advanced packaging innovations that support next-generation semiconductor growth. Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) Discusses DRAM and Advanced Packaging Innovations for AI-Driven Semiconductor Growth Prepared Remarks Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Investor sentiment was also supported by a Zacks list naming AMAT among the day’s top momentum stocks, reinforcing bullish technical momentum. Best Momentum Stocks to Buy for July 2nd
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary continues to frame Applied Materials as a behind-the-scenes winner from the AI boom, which could help justify its elevated valuation if chip demand stays strong. Applied Materials Is Silently Powering the AI Boom. Here’s Why.
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader semiconductor stocks sold off as investors took profits after a strong first half, suggesting some of AMAT’s weakness may be sector-driven rather than company-specific. Why Applied Materials (AMAT) Shares Are Falling Today
• Neutral Sentiment: Another report noted AMAT fell more than the overall market in the latest session, but the move was tied to chip-sector weakness rather than a new earnings miss or guidance cut. Applied Materials (AMAT) Suffers a Larger Drop Than the General Market: Key Insights
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Gary Dickerson disclosed two sizable stock sales, including 20,000 shares sold at $735.22, which can weigh on investor sentiment even though he still retains a very large position. Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) CEO Sells $14,704,400.00 in Stock

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Argus increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $553.56.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $603.04 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $154.46 and a fifty-two week high of $739.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $495.52 and a 200 day moving average of $389.39. 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 firm has a market cap of $478.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.62, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.57.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The business 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 revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 EPS for the current 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 issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 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.