World Investment Advisors Reduces Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

World Investment Advisors trimmed its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.7% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 78,389 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,907 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors’ holdings in Applied Materials were worth $26,793,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. First Dallas Securities Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,427,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.8% in the first quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 46,343 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $15,840,000 after acquiring an additional 2,545 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.9% in the first quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 631,762 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $215,930,000 after acquiring an additional 5,700 shares during the period. Capelight Capital Asset Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 100.0% during the first quarter. Capelight Capital Asset Management LP now owns 20,000 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,836,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 21.4% during the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 48,452 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $16,560,000 after purchasing an additional 8,557 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $603.04 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $154.46 and a 1-year high of $739.67. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $499.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $390.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $478.79 billion, a PE ratio of 56.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.57.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 19.91%.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly bullish on Applied Materials, with Zacks upgrading the stock to strong-buy and other recent research highlighting AMAT as a key beneficiary of the AI semiconductor equipment cycle. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage says Applied Materials is benefiting from accelerating growth in AI-related chip demand, with record earnings momentum and a new Street-high target reinforcing the bull case. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials also discussed DRAM and advanced packaging innovations tied to AI-driven semiconductor growth, which supports the view that its product mix remains well positioned for the current cycle. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Some articles question whether AMAT is becoming too expensive after its rally, suggesting valuation concerns could limit upside if growth expectations cool. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Michael Burry reportedly added to short bets against Applied Materials and other chip names, adding a bearish sentiment overlay on the semiconductor sector. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Applied Materials CEO Gary Dickerson disclosed two recent stock sales totaling more than 78,000 shares, which can weigh on investor sentiment even though he still owns a large position. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks, including AMAT, also came under pressure in broader sector selloffs as investors worried that AI-driven chip demand may be cooling and took profits after a strong rally. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AMAT. Argus raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on Applied Materials in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. UBS Group raised their price target on Applied Materials from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $553.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,184,361.88. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at $24,326,071.43. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.