Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Sells 9,694 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 55.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,726 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 9,694 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,582,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 150.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the sale, the director directly owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at $10,778,624.78. The trade was a 12.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group set a $430.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $357.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $283.67 billion, a PE ratio of 36.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.65. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $395.95. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $339.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $267.01.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st 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 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied raised its quarterly dividend by 15%, marking a continuation of multi‑year dividend growth and signaling confidence in cash flow and the AI/memory tool cycle. This directly supports shareholder returns and boosts investor sentiment. Applied Materials Lifts Dividend As AI Investment And Cash Returns Converge
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying fundamentals remain supportive: recent quarterly beats and company guidance (Q2 FY26 EPS range) reinforce expectations that AMAT will benefit from AI-driven capital expenditure across logic and memory chipmakers. This is a core reason investors are bidding the stock higher. 3 Reasons Investors Watch Applied Materials (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Sector peers (e.g., Lam Research) are reporting rising systems revenue and benefiting from the AI capex cycle; that peer strength supports the thesis that equipment suppliers like AMAT can sustain higher order activity into 2026. Can Lam Research’s Systems Business Sustain Growth Amid AI Capex Boom?
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer‑term tooling developments (ASML High‑NA EUV adoption by imec) underpin next‑generation chip roadmaps, which is positive for equipment demand but is a multi‑year story rather than an immediate catalyst for AMAT. Belgium’s imec secures rare ASML High NA EUV tool
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest data for AMAT in mid‑March shows anomalous zero/NaN figures across filings, making it unreliable as a directional signal right now. Investors should treat those prints with caution. (internal reporting)
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market moves — including commodity swings and mixed reactions to semiconductor earnings (e.g., Micron) — add macro volatility that can blunt sector rallies even when company‑specific news is positive. Dow Jones Futures: Oil Backs Off $100; Micron Skids Despite Blowout Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: AMAT has run up substantially over recent months (large percentage gains), raising the risk of a near‑term pullback or profit‑taking; valuation metrics (higher P/E) mean the stock is more sensitive to any slowdown in capex or weaker guidance. 3 Reasons Investors Watch Applied Materials (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.