Maloon Powers Pitre Higgins & Dennehy LLC Buys Shares of 2,145 Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Maloon Powers Pitre Higgins & Dennehy LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,145 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,551,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Markowski Investments acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $269,000. Old Mission Investment Co LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $1,376,000. Highland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Turner Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $602,000. Finally, Strive Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 185.2% during the 2nd quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC now owns 904 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $654,000 after buying an additional 587 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI-driven equipment demand remains the main catalyst. Growth in advanced packaging, DRAM and high-bandwidth memory (HBM), along with accelerating global fab investment, is strengthening the outlook for Applied Materials’ equipment orders. AMAT Rides on AI-Led WFE Demand: Can it Sustain the Momentum?
• Positive Sentiment: Raised forecasts have driven a major valuation re-rating. Although trailing-twelve-month revenue growth was only 7.8%, management reportedly increased its forecast twice between February and August as semiconductor demand expectations improved. That forward-growth story helps explain the stock’s roughly 180% one-year return. Why Did Applied Materials Stock Nearly Triple On Single-Digit Trailing Revenue Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst expectations are improving. UBS projected strong potential appreciation for AMAT, while another analyst raised the fiscal 2027 EPS estimate, signaling continued confidence in earnings growth and semiconductor capital spending. UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Applied Materials FY2027 EPS Estimate for Applied Materials Boosted by Analyst
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation remains a key debate. Despite a recent pullback, AMAT has gained about 237% over five years, leaving investors questioning how much AI and semiconductor-cycle optimism is already reflected in the shares. Can Applied Materials Still Look Cheap After a 237% Run?
• Negative Sentiment: Industry-cycle risks have not disappeared. Optimism about a permanently stronger semiconductor cycle is tempered by potential memory-capacity imbalances, which could pressure chipmakers’ capital spending if supply expands faster than demand. SEMIs CEO Has Watched Four Decades of Chip Cycles

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $454.71 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $533.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $460.59. The firm has a market cap of $360.86 billion, a PE ratio of 39.20, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.82 and a 1-year high of $739.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 38.02% and a net margin of 30.05%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,695,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,006,503,625. This represents a 4.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Timothy Deane sold 8,621 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $5,092,941.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 231,692 shares of company stock worth $146,114,059. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $645.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $605.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $658.45.

Applied Materials Company 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.