Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,848 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,083 shares during the quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $602.50 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $478.36 billion, a PE ratio of 56.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.57. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $154.46 and a 52 week high of $739.67. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $517.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $403.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $589.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of Applied Materials 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at $79,534,609.56. The trade was a 6.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total value of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805. 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: Applied Materials rallied after CEO Gary Dickerson said chipmakers have “tremendous visibility” into demand, implying the AI investment cycle could support equipment orders for years rather than quarters. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Jumps after CEO Says AI Chip Demand Has Years to Run
• Positive Sentiment: Meta Platforms’ reported plan to begin manufacturing an in-house AI chip helped spark a broader rally in semiconductor equipment stocks, including Applied Materials, on expectations that AI infrastructure spending will remain strong. Applied Materials stock jumps as Meta AI chip plan lifts semiconductor names
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel and Needham both raised their price targets on AMAT and kept buy ratings, reinforcing the view that improving fundamentals and AI-driven demand could support further upside. Applied Materials PT Raised to $650 at Stifel
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials was removed from several Russell value-oriented indices in late June, a classification change that reflects the stock’s shift toward being viewed more as an AI/semiconductor growth name than a value stock. How Investors Are Reacting To Applied Materials (AMAT) Being Dropped From Key Russell Value Indices
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no reported short interest as of July 10, offering little evidence of bearish positioning from the latest filing.

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.