Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Stock Holdings Boosted by Maj Invest Holding A S

Maj Invest Holding A S grew its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 42.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,243,658 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 370,967 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises about 8.0% of Maj Invest Holding A S’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Maj Invest Holding A S’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $227,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Avity Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Avity Investment Management Inc. now owns 220,835 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $40,428,000 after buying an additional 8,680 shares during the last quarter. Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 12.7% during the first quarter. Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych now owns 26,650 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,867,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Redwood Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 311.2% during the first quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 12,924 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,876,000 after acquiring an additional 9,781 shares during the period. Gallacher Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter worth $410,000. Finally, LifePlan Financial LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at $755,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $228.13 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $181.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company’s 50 day moving average is $187.67 and its 200-day moving average is $175.28. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $232.07.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. The business had revenue of $7.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 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, December 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 21.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on AMAT. Morgan Stanley upgraded Applied Materials from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $172.00 to $209.00 in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, July 7th. B. Riley boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Daiwa America downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $209.15.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.