SEB Asset Management AB Makes New Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

SEB Asset Management AB bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 512,119 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $175,037,000. Applied Materials makes up about 0.7% of SEB Asset Management AB’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 48.7% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the sale, the director owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total value of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $529.66 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $533.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $413.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $420.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.73, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. 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, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for 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%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.14 EPS for the current 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 given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AMAT. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target 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. HC Wainwright set a $850.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, May 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. One 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $593.84.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group Bank raised its FY2026 and FY2027 earnings estimates for Applied Materials and reiterated a Buy rating, signaling confidence in the company’s growth outlook and AI-driven demand.
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials CEO comments reinforcing the AI investment thesis may help support longer-term sentiment around the stock. Article link
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks noted that AMAT has been drawing increased attention from investors, but the piece was mainly a stock-screening update rather than a new fundamental catalyst. Article link
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary suggested Applied Materials may be trading above fair value after a strong multi-year run, which could limit upside even if earnings remain solid. Article link
• Negative Sentiment: A broad semiconductor selloff is pressuring AMAT along with peers like AMD and Intel, as the market rotates out of chip stocks and into other areas. Article link

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.