Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lowered its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Free Report) by 25.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,770 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 5,457 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $11,402,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. CFO4Life Group LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $474,000. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 61.3% during the 2nd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 11,373 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,223,000 after acquiring an additional 4,324 shares during the period. Findlay Park Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 77.2% during the 2nd quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP now owns 277,860 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $200,893,000 after acquiring an additional 121,060 shares in the last quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 36.9% during the 2nd quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 11,119 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,039,000 after acquiring an additional 2,995 shares in the last quarter. Finally, W1M Asset Management Ltd increased its stake in Applied Materials by 38.8% in the second quarter. W1M Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,417 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,025,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.
Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials
In related news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at $79,534,609.56. The trade was a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,695,164 shares in the company, valued at $1,006,503,625. This trade represents a 4.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 276,692 shares of company stock valued at $169,030,834 over the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Applied Materials Price Performance
Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 EPS for the current year.
Applied Materials Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.28%.
Applied Materials News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Materials this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reportedly named Applied Materials a “top pick,” citing the company’s exposure to the continued buildout of AI infrastructure and chip-manufacturing capacity. Applied Materials Stock Is Named a Top Pick at Goldman Sachs
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts see significant upside after the stock’s decline from its high, with AI-driven semiconductor investment and record quarterly revenue supporting bullish price targets. One report cited an average target near $641, implying roughly 32% potential appreciation from recent levels. Wall Street Sees Rally Despite Decline From Peak
- Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is viewed as a key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending because its equipment and engineering solutions are essential to advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Why Investors Should Buy the Dip in AMAT
- Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its Applied Materials price target from $650 to $590 but retained an “outperform” rating. The reduced target reflects more cautious expectations, while the rating still indicates confidence in the company’s longer-term prospects. Benzinga
- Neutral Sentiment: The reported August short-interest figures show zero shares and a mathematically invalid change, making the data unreliable and unlikely to provide a meaningful trading signal.
- Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks broadly declined as investors reduced risk ahead of NVIDIA’s results, weighing on Applied Materials alongside other chipmakers. Semiconductor Stocks Slide Ahead of NVIDIA Earnings
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several brokerages have commented on AMAT. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price target on Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $657.76.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on AMAT
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.
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