Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 332,917 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,967 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $68,161,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 150.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $32,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Down 4.9%

Applied Materials stock opened at $375.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $298.18 billion, a PE ratio of 38.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $314.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $248.22. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $395.95.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.83%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total value of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,112 shares of company stock worth $3,660,532. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 outperformance and upgraded outlook drove conviction that demand for advanced-node and packaging tools remains strong — management beat estimates, gave solid Q2 guidance and highlighted 2nm/advanced‑packaging revenue drivers. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Up 5.3% After Strong Q1, Export Deal And 2nm Push
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst bullishness: Morgan Stanley raised its price target (to $432) and other brokers have lifted targets and ratings recently, supporting upside expectations vs. the market run. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Industry positioning: Coverage notes AMAT is scaling up exposure to logic, DRAM/HBM and hybrid‑bonding/packaging tailwinds driven by AI, which supports multi‑year bookings and margins. AMAT Scales Up Logic, DRAM & Advanced Packaging
• Neutral Sentiment: SPIE presentation and fund commentary highlighted technical innovation and that AMAT outperformed some mutual‑fund portfolios, useful for medium‑term narrative but unlikely to move price alone. Applied Materials Presents at SPIE 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reports this week show anomalous/zero and NaN values — the published figures look unreliable and shouldn’t be treated as a clear bearish signal without confirmation from official exchanges.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CAO Adam Sanders (and other insiders) disclosed share sales (~534 shares), which can weigh on near‑term sentiment even if routine. CAO Adam Sanders Form 4 TipRanks: Insider Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Sector/peer weakness: Today’s pullback in several semiconductor-equipment and chip names is pressuring AMAT alongside profit‑taking after a large one‑year rally. MSN: Shares Falling — What You Need to Know

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AMAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $290.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $315.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $363.46.

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.