D.A. Davidson & CO. Sells 6,860 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

D.A. Davidson & CO. lowered its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 14.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 42,012 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 6,860 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $21,484,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.3% during the second quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.1% in the second quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC now owns 961 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $695,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.1% during the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $725,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.9% during the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 13.0% during the second quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 26th. New Street Research lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $515.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $650.00 to $590.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $740.00 to $580.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 16th. Thirty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $632.70.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $421.66 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $203.40 and a one year high of $739.67. The company has a market cap of $334.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.13, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.42. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $459.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $443.21.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 38.02% and a net margin of 30.05%. The company had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.48 EPS. The firm’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, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.28%.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Memory shortage outlook supports equipment demand. SK Hynix’s expectation that the memory shortage could persist into 2030 suggests chipmakers may continue expanding and upgrading fabrication capacity. That outlook lifted Applied Materials and peers because the company supplies equipment used to build advanced memory and logic fabs. The rally may be tempered by industry supply bottlenecks and Applied Materials’ China exposure. Chip Equipment Stocks Rally as SK Hynix Signals Memory Shortage Into 2030
• Positive Sentiment: AI investment is broadening across the semiconductor ecosystem. Capital spending on AI infrastructure is increasing demand for chips, factories, manufacturing tools and process-control technologies. Applied Materials is viewed as a direct beneficiary of that spending, while industry research also points to opportunities in epitaxial wafers, automation and AI-based yield improvement. Top 3 AI Chip Stocks With P E Under 43
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment and earnings expectations remain supportive. Recent coverage describes Wall Street analysts as optimistic, while analysts expect a robust double-digit earnings increase in the coming quarterly report as AI-driven chip demand continues. Applied Materials’ latest reported quarter also exceeded consensus revenue and earnings estimates, reinforcing the bullish narrative. Is Applied Materials a Buy as Wall Street Analysts Look Optimistic?
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor interest remains high, but the stock is volatile. Applied Materials was highlighted as a potential long-term market-beater, an undervalued AI leader and one of several stocks added to ETFs. Separate coverage noted that the company joined other issuers opposing tokenized versions of their shares under an SEC innovation framework. These developments increase visibility but do not immediately change operating results. Applied Materials: Top Quality And Undervalued AI Leader

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total transaction of $394,806.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,732,245.36. The trade was a 18.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total transaction of $465,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,544 shares in the company, valued at $11,877,960. The trade was a 3.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 9,225 shares of company stock valued at $4,454,181. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Profile

Applied Materials, Inc is a technology company that supplies equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its products help customers fabricate the integrated circuits and other components used in computers, mobile devices, data centers, automobiles and a range of connected technologies.

The company’s offerings include systems for materials engineering, wafer fabrication, inspection and process control, along with equipment and services designed to improve manufacturing productivity and yield.