Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund trimmed its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 209,058 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 7,200 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $53,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted 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 buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 147.2% during the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total transaction of $116,370.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,461.60. This trade represents a 5.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.86, for a total transaction of $1,247,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 136,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,901,331.18. This trade represents a 1.80% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 53,896 shares of company stock worth $27,135,121. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Trading Down 9.7%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $453.01 on Friday. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $408.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $342.31. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $510.75. The stock has a market cap of $359.67 billion, a PE ratio of 42.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued 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 firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 19.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on AMAT. Stifel Nicolaus set a $530.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 15th. HSBC began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $517.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. KGI Securities upgraded shares of Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.13.

Applied Materials 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.