Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich Has $45.75 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1,361.0% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 133,857 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 124,695 shares during the quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $45,751,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,335 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Stenger Family Office LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 6.0% during the first quarter. Stenger Family Office LLC now owns 5,977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,043,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at about $695,000. Flatrock Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth about $235,000. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 11.3% during the 1st quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 47,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $16,294,000 after acquiring an additional 4,821 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. This trade represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AMAT. Truist Financial set a $575.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $650.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $573.19.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Susquehanna raised its price target on Applied Materials, adding to the bullish analyst backdrop around the stock. Susquehanna Raises Price Target on Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Applied Materials’ advanced packaging opportunity, noting management’s goal of more than 50% packaging revenue growth in 2026 as AI demand drives HBM, 3D chiplet stacking, and next-generation packaging demand. Can AMAT’s Advanced Packaging Drive Its Next Growth Phase?
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials unveiled SENZ to speed development of AI smart glasses, reinforcing the company’s exposure to emerging AI hardware markets. Applied Materials (AMAT) Unveils SENZ To Speed AI Smart Glasses Development
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials was also named among Zacks’ top momentum stocks, suggesting technical strength and continued investor interest. Best Momentum Stock to Buy for July 7th
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles framed AMAT as a high-quality but volatile stock, with recent selling tied to a broader semiconductor and memory-stock downturn rather than company-specific weakness. Every Memory Stock Is Now in a Bear Market: Is Micron, SanDisk, or Applied Materials the Best Buy?
• Negative Sentiment: AMAT was caught in an industry-wide chip selloff after weaker sentiment across memory names and a broader tech pullback, which pressured the stock earlier in the week. What Is Going on With Applied Materials Stock on Tuesday?

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.9%

AMAT opened at $570.50 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $154.46 and a 1-year high of $739.67. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $452.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.57. The business has a 50 day moving average of $509.35 and a 200-day moving average of $398.54.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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 given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

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.