Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc. Has $78.95 Million Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc. lowered its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 51.6% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 109,202 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 116,627 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for approximately 5.5% of Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $78,955,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AMAT. Harborfront Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 34.8% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 93 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm executive joins the board: Applied Materials appointed Qualcomm CFO and COO Akash Palkhiwala as a director and Audit Committee member. His semiconductor-industry, finance and operating experience could strengthen the board as AMAT targets growth in advanced logic, memory and AI infrastructure. Applied Materials Appoints Akash Palkhiwala to Board of Directors
• Positive Sentiment: AI buildout supports earnings momentum: Recent coverage highlights AMAT’s record quarter-over-quarter revenue increase, with quarterly revenue of $9.12 billion, up 25% year over year, and non-GAAP earnings per share of $3.50, up 41%. Demand is being driven by advanced DRAM, high-bandwidth memory, leading-edge logic and advanced packaging. The AI Buildout Is Turning Applied Materials Into A Profit Machine
• Positive Sentiment: Services business remains healthy: AMAT’s Applied Global Services segment reported record revenue and expanding margins, supported by subscription services, parts demand and increased semiconductor-fab utilization. This recurring revenue stream may help cushion equipment-cycle volatility. AMAT’s AGS Business Gains Momentum
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst upside remains substantial: The average Wall Street price target implies roughly 35% potential upside, although targets are estimates and AMAT’s elevated valuation makes further gains dependent on continued earnings growth. Does Applied Materials Have the Potential to Rally?
• Negative Sentiment: China exposure is a key overhang: New Chinese immersion DUV lithography capabilities and tighter export controls raise concerns about domestic competition and reduced access to China, a significant AMAT market. Applied Materials’ China Problem Is Getting Worse
• Negative Sentiment: CFO stock sale adds a minor sentiment concern: CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 shares worth approximately $3.6 million, reducing his holdings by 5.51%. The transaction does not change AMAT’s fundamentals but may weigh modestly on investor sentiment. SEC Insider Transaction Filing

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC restated a “buy” rating and set a $683.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, July 27th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $740.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Wolfe Research boosted their price objective 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, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $657.76.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 284,192 shares of company stock worth $172,625,209. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.5%

AMAT opened at $482.36 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $154.46 and a 1-year high of $739.67. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $553.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $456.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market cap of $382.80 billion, a PE ratio of 41.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.61.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.28%.

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.