Midway Capital Research & Management Purchases Shares of 29,777 Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Midway Capital Research & Management purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 29,777 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,652,000. Applied Materials comprises about 7.5% of Midway Capital Research & Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 119.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 617.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after acquiring an additional 7,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coatue Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $685,684,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total transaction of $14,398,392.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 146,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,184,361.88. This trade represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 189,767 shares of company stock valued at $107,769,409. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $617.11 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $489.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.94, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.67. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $451.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $364.90. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.46 and a 12 month high of $638.90.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 EPS 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials’ AGS services business is being highlighted as a long-term growth engine, with AI-enabled services and expanding margins potentially creating more recurring revenue. Can AMAT’s AGS Business Become a Long-Term Growth Driver?
• Positive Sentiment: Shares are benefiting from renewed enthusiasm around AI demand and strong earnings momentum, with articles noting the stock has been hitting new highs after solid results and upbeat guidance. AI Demand, Earnings Send Applied Materials to New Highs
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials launched SENZ with Qualcomm and EssilorLuxottica for AI eyewear, reinforcing investor hopes that the company can expand beyond core chipmaking tools into adjacent growth markets. Applied Materials (AMAT) Launches SENZ With Qualcomm And EssilorLuxottica For AI Eyewear
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains constructive, with higher price targets such as Citi’s $710 view helping fuel the rally by suggesting AI demand can justify the premium valuation. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Rallies 8.75% on Citi’s Bullish $710 Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Several insiders, including CEO Gary Dickerson and SVP Omkaram Nalamasu, sold shares this week; while the sales were small relative to their remaining holdings, they can weigh on sentiment. Why Applied Materials Insiders Sold $65 Million Worth of Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary warns the stock looks expensive after a sharp year-to-date surge, with valuation comparisons to the dot-com era potentially prompting caution despite the strong fundamental backdrop. Applied Materials stock valuation and performance

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on AMAT. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $530.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $489.16.

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.