Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC Lowers Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 49,925 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,337 shares during the period. Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $12,830,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 617.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after purchasing an additional 7,856,576 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the period. Finally, Coatue Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $685,684,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on AMAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, B. Riley Financial raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven equities 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, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $489.16.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $592.92 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $441.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $360.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $154.46 and a 1-year high of $623.35. The company has a market cap of $470.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. Analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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 paid 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 dividend yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total transaction of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total transaction of $5,092,941.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. The trade was a 6.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 189,767 shares of company stock valued at $107,769,409. 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: Citi raised its price target on Applied Materials, boosting confidence that AI infrastructure spending and demand for memory-chip manufacturing tools will keep growth strong. Applied Materials surges as Citi lifts target on AI demand boom
• Positive Sentiment: The company unveiled SENZ, an integrated AI/AR smart-glasses visual platform, expanding its story beyond semiconductor equipment into next-generation optics and wearable tech. EssilorLuxottica and Applied Materials Join Forces to Advance Augmented Reality Optics Platforms for Next-Generation Smart Glasses
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials and EssilorLuxottica announced a long-term partnership to develop AR and AI smart-eyewear optics, suggesting an additional growth avenue and validating AMAT’s materials expertise. EssilorLuxottica, Applied Materials strike deal to develop smart glasses, AR technology
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports highlighted record highs and strong momentum for chip-equipment stocks, with AMAT benefiting from the broader AI-driven rally in semiconductor capital equipment. Applied Materials Stock Is One Of the S&P 500 Leaders Today. It’s AI.

Applied Materials 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.