Vicus Capital Takes Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Vicus Capital acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,224 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $418,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Applied Materials by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $19,731,523,000 after buying an additional 330,197 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after acquiring an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,470,835 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,947,891,000 after acquiring an additional 373,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $2,858,543,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Up 10.8%

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $694.64 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $551.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.46 and a 12 month high of $708.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The company has a 50-day moving average of $479.64 and a 200-day moving average of $381.14.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its 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. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.39 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 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, September 10th. Stockholders 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 payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total value of $6,335,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 346,642 shares in the company, valued at $219,608,106.26. This trade represents a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 199,767 shares of company stock worth $114,104,709. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AMAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $541.06.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: KeyBanc turned more constructive ahead of Applied Materials’ upcoming Q3 earnings, helping fuel a surge in the stock as traders bet on strong near-term results and continued AI-related demand. Why Applied Materials Shares Are Surging Monday
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple firms raised their price targets, including KeyBanc and Bank of America, with one note lifting its target to a Street-high level and reinforcing a bullish outlook for AMAT. Bank of America Just Gave Applied Materials Stock a New Street-High Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials was added to the Russell Top 50 index, which could increase passive-fund ownership and broaden investor attention. Applied Materials (AMAT) Joins Russell Top 50 After Leaving Value Indexes
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary from market strategists noted that much of the good news may already be priced in after AMAT’s strong run, raising the risk that any earnings disappointment could trigger volatility. This Analyst Sees 20% Upside For AMAT Stock – Says High Expectations Around Applied Materials’ Businesses Create Short-Term Risk
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts cautioned that expectations are now very high after the stock’s rapid rally, which could limit upside if Applied Materials does not deliver an especially strong earnings report. Applied Materials: Equipment Market Surge Priced Into Stock Price

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.