First Trust Advisors LP Decreases Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

First Trust Advisors LP cut its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 14.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,589,257 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 426,201 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up approximately 0.6% of First Trust Advisors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.33% of Applied Materials worth $884,982,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total value of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the sale, the director owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $575.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $550.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Applied Materials from $540.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $593.84.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Peer Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing announced plans to raise chipmaking prices by up to 10% in 2027, while wafer supplier IQE lifted guidance, reinforcing expectations for strong AI and data-center chip demand and more equipment spending across the semiconductor supply chain. Why Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Is Up Today
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials’ installed base services business appears to be a growing recurring-revenue engine, with Applied Global Services revenue rising to $1.665 billion from $1.42 billion a year earlier as fab utilization improves. Is AMAT’s Installed Base Business Built for Long-Term Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Industry commentary continues to point to AI-driven semiconductor growth as a tailwind for AMAT, with analysts highlighting the company as a beneficiary of sustained demand for advanced chips and manufacturing equipment. 3 Stocks to Buy From the Prospering Semiconductor Industry
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials also joined CuspAI’s AI Materials Foundry as a founding member, a strategic move that could support long-term materials discovery efforts, though it is not an immediate earnings catalyst. Applied Materials (AMAT) Joins CuspAI Foundry To Speed Semiconductor Materials Discovery
• Negative Sentiment: Some market commentary flagged seasonal weakness for AMAT heading into late July, which could temper momentum if investors focus on near-term trading patterns. Three Stocks Just Flashed Seasonal Signals

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $564.55 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.46 and a 12 month high of $739.67. 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 market capitalization of $448.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $537.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $418.14.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The business’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

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.