Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Price Down 2.2% Following Insider Selling

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) shares were down 2.2% during trading on Tuesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $526.52 and last traded at $530.27. Approximately 4,858,890 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average session volume of 7,918,373 shares. The stock had previously closed at $542.28.

Specifically, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total transaction of $394,806.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,732,245.36. This represents a 18.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Craig Hallum increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $640.20.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Expanded Intel collaboration supports AI growth narrative. Applied Materials and Intel are working at Applied’s EPIC Center in Silicon Valley and Intel’s Oregon research campus on next-generation transistors, interconnects and advanced packaging for AI chips and systems. The partnership could strengthen AMAT’s position in advanced chip manufacturing and create longer-term equipment demand. Applied Materials and Intel Collaborate to Accelerate Chipmaking Innovations for AI-Driven Computing
• Positive Sentiment: Recent memory and packaging partnerships add to the AI opportunity. Collaborations with KIOXIA and BE Semiconductor Industries are aimed at next-generation memory, packaging and interconnect technologies, reinforcing Applied Materials’ strategy of benefiting from AI-driven semiconductor complexity. Applied Materials Is Up After New AI Chip Memory and Packaging Partnerships Announced
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary remains constructive ahead of earnings. Goldman Sachs identified AMAT as a tactical semiconductor pick, while Zacks cited AI-related wafer-fabrication-equipment demand, strong Applied Global Services growth and capacity expansion. The company’s latest reported quarter also exceeded revenue and EPS expectations. 3 Tactical Chip Stocks to Buy Ahead of Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity and heavy online searches indicate elevated investor attention, but neither necessarily confirms the direction or durability of the move. Is the Options Market Predicting a Spike in Applied Materials Stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and insider selling temper enthusiasm. AMAT trades at a premium valuation, with a reported price-to-sales ratio of 9.59x. Chief Accounting Officer Adam Sanders sold 725 shares to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards; the transaction appears routine but is still a modest negative signal. Applied Materials CAO Sells 725 Shares

Applied Materials Stock Down 2.2%

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $485.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $478.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The company has a market capitalization of $420.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.71, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.60.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The business had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.48 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 18.28%.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Applied Materials by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 80,212,518 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $57,993,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,237,685 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 85.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 69,525,842 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $50,267,184,000 after buying an additional 32,018,892 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 19.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 7,808,207 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,645,344,000 after buying an additional 1,246,876 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 16.2% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,713,599 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,576,932,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073,879 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $5,252,863,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Company Profile

Applied Materials, Inc is a global supplier of equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductor chips, flat-panel displays and other advanced electronic products. Its technologies help customers build and enhance materials at the nanoscale, supporting processes such as deposition, etching, inspection, metrology and packaging.

The company’s offerings include semiconductor manufacturing systems, process-control and inspection equipment, and services designed to improve the performance, productivity and longevity of production equipment.