Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Stock Position Lifted by Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 9.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,032 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,258 shares during the quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $6,690,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,846,800 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $731,598,000 after purchasing an additional 80,985 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,798 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $719,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 401,889 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $103,281,000 after purchasing an additional 21,395 shares in the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 13,387 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,440,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 48,768 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $12,533,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. DZ Bank upgraded Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $368.29.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $381.17 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.71 and a 1-year high of $420.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market capitalization of $302.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.64. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $367.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $304.78.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 21.70%.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley expresses a more optimistic outlook for semiconductor capital spending and is bullish on Applied’s positioning, providing a near-term analyst tailwind that could support the stock if capex demand reaccelerates. B. Riley Bullish on Applied Materials (AMAT); Sees Better Outlook for Semiconductor Capital Spending
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnership news — Advantest joining Applied’s EPIC platform and opening an Innovation Center — strengthens Applied’s ecosystem play across front-end process and back-end test, a structural positive for long-term revenue and differentiation. Is Advantest’s EPIC Tie-Up Reshaping the Long-Term Investment Case for Applied Materials (AMAT)?
• Neutral Sentiment: Broker commentary remains generally constructive (average brokerage recommendations and a recent Erste upgrade), which supports conviction among longer-term investors even as headlines create volatility. Brokers Suggest Investing in Applied Materials (AMAT): Read This Before Placing a Bet
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. Commerce Department ordered chip-equipment firms to halt some shipments to China’s Hua Hong, and Applied was among companies receiving restriction letters — a direct near-term revenue risk for tools sales into China. U.S. halts chip equipment shipments to China’s Hua Hong
• Negative Sentiment: Broader semiconductor sell-off (spurred by reports that OpenAI missed growth targets and sector rotation) is weighing on AMAT alongside peers, amplifying volatility and driving short-term downside. What Is Going On With Applied Materials Stock On Tuesday?
• Negative Sentiment: Macro risk: Middle East tensions pushed oil higher and contributed to risk-off trading that pressured tech and chip stocks broadly. US Equity Markets End Lower as Chipmakers Slide, Middle East Tensions Lift Oil

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.