Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Free Report) by 106.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 101,268 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 52,290 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $73,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,589,000. Evolve Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 59.0% in the first quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,875 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $983,000 after purchasing an additional 1,067 shares in the last quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $1,082,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 183.7% during the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,073 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $790,000 after buying an additional 1,990 shares during the period. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 29.6% during the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 462,685 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $334,521,000 after buying an additional 105,776 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $675.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, HC Wainwright set a $850.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, June 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $657.76.
Key Applied Materials News
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
Insider Transactions at Applied Materials
In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,695,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,006,503,625. This represents a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 276,692 shares of company stock valued at $169,030,834. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.
Applied Materials Trading Down 0.9%
NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $480.04 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $558.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $454.37. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $154.46 and a 52 week high of $739.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market cap of $380.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.38, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.61.
Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Applied Materials Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.28%.
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.
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