Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Invests $251,000 in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 733 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $251,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 28.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 30.1% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,747,000 after purchasing an additional 3,469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 59.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $77,383,000 after purchasing an additional 157,426 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: KeyBanc, Cantor Fitzgerald, and Bank of America all turned more bullish on AMAT, with multiple price-target hikes and fresh upside calls ahead of earnings, reinforcing the view that demand for chip-making equipment remains strong. Why Applied Materials Shares Are Surging Monday
• Positive Sentiment: The stock has been one of the biggest winners in the semiconductor space, with June marking its best monthly rally since 1975 as AI infrastructure spending lifted estimates and investor sentiment. Stock Of The Day: Is This The Top For Applied Materials?
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group raised its FY2026 and FY2027 earnings estimates for Applied Materials, signaling confidence that earnings growth can continue beyond the current year. Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles note the stock is technically very extended and “overbought,” which suggests momentum is strong but also raises the risk of a near-term pullback after the huge run-up. Stock Of The Day: Is This The Top For Applied Materials?
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials was also added to the Russell Top 50 Index, which can boost visibility and passive fund ownership, though the impact is more about flows than fundamentals. Applied Materials (AMAT) Joins Russell Top 50 After Leaving Value Indexes

Applied Materials Trading Up 4.1%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $723.00 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $486.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $384.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $154.46 and a 12-month 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 cap of $574.03 billion, a PE ratio of 67.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.67.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company 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 of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total transaction of $6,335,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 346,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,608,106.26. This trade represents a 2.80% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Truist Financial set a $575.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $650.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, HC Wainwright set a $850.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $553.56.

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.