Adam Sanders Sells 268 Shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock

Posted by Jeff Wilder on May 28th, 2026

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total transaction of $116,370.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,858,461.60. The trade was a 5.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.5%

AMAT opened at $448.25 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $355.89 billion, a PE ratio of 42.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.66. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $393.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $331.12. 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 $153.47 and a 52 week high of $462.40.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last posted 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. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials reported strong fiscal Q2 results, with revenue of $7.91 billion and EPS of $2.86, both ahead of estimates, which supports the case for continued fundamental strength. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Up 11.8% After Raising Q3 Outlook And Expanding AI Packaging Alliance
Positive Sentiment: The company raised Q3 2026 revenue guidance to about $8.95 billion, signaling management sees healthy demand in semiconductor equipment and AI-related spending. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Up 11.8% After Raising Q3 Outlook And Expanding AI Packaging Alliance
Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials expanded its AI packaging ecosystem by partnering with Broadcom and SCREEN Semiconductor Solutions, a development that could strengthen its position in next-generation chip packaging and advanced wafer cleaning. Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) Partners with Broadcom on Advanced Chip Packaging Technologies for AI Systems
Positive Sentiment: The SCREEN partnership at the EPIC Center adds another innovation collaborator, which may improve chip yields and accelerate commercialization of advanced-node technologies. Applied Materials Partners with SCREEN To Bring Advanced Wafer Cleaning Technologies to EPIC Center
Neutral Sentiment: CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares in a small insider transaction, which appears too minor to materially change the investment case. Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) CAO Sells $116,370.96 in Stock
Negative Sentiment: A market commentary on momentum stocks warned that extended winners can pull back, which may be contributing to some caution around AMAT after its strong run. Intel, AMD, and Other Momentum Stocks Look Unstoppable. Look Again.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Applied Materials by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $19,731,523,000 after purchasing an additional 330,197 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% during 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 buying an additional 3,583,751 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,470,835 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,947,891,000 after buying an additional 373,012 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,858,543,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. DZ Bank raised shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $466.52.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Applied Materials

Applied Materials Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.