Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Has $313.63 Million Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 433,796 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 20,874 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned 0.05% of Applied Materials worth $313,635,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 30.1% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,747,000 after acquiring an additional 3,469 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 59.3% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $77,383,000 after acquiring an additional 157,426 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $480.04 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $558.87 and a 200-day moving average of $454.37. The company has a market cap of $380.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $154.46 and a 52 week high of $739.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reportedly named Applied Materials a “top pick,” citing the company’s exposure to the continued buildout of AI infrastructure and chip-manufacturing capacity. Applied Materials Stock Is Named a Top Pick at Goldman Sachs
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see significant upside after the stock’s decline from its high, with AI-driven semiconductor investment and record quarterly revenue supporting bullish price targets. One report cited an average target near $641, implying roughly 32% potential appreciation from recent levels. Wall Street Sees Rally Despite Decline From Peak
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is viewed as a key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending because its equipment and engineering solutions are essential to advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Why Investors Should Buy the Dip in AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its Applied Materials price target from $650 to $590 but retained an “outperform” rating. The reduced target reflects more cautious expectations, while the rating still indicates confidence in the company’s longer-term prospects. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: The reported August short-interest figures show zero shares and a mathematically invalid change, making the data unreliable and unlikely to provide a meaningful trading signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks broadly declined as investors reduced risk ahead of NVIDIA’s results, weighing on Applied Materials alongside other chipmakers. Semiconductor Stocks Slide Ahead of NVIDIA Earnings

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 146,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. This trade represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $735.22, for a total value of $14,704,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,599,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,176,236,570.46. This represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 276,692 shares of company stock worth $169,030,834 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on AMAT. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 14th. UBS Group set a $675.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $605.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $657.76.

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.