Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Trims Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund trimmed its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 51.9% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 456,984 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 492,496 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $156,193,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Private Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 4.9% during the first quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 531 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $181,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. One Day In July LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.4% in the first quarter. One Day In July LLC now owns 1,089 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $372,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 2,082 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $712,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $446,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Warther Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,908 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is still viewed favorably versus a peer in advanced packaging, with commentary highlighting its AI-related packaging exposure, broad chipmaking portfolio, and high-margin services as reasons it may be a safer long-term bet. AMAT vs. Q: Which Advanced Packaging Stock is a Safer Bet Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to point to AI-led semiconductor demand, with Applied Materials repeatedly cited as one of the stocks benefiting from ongoing chip investment and stronger equipment spending. Buy These 5 Semiconductor Stocks Charged Up by AI Enthusiasm
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials announced it will report fiscal third-quarter 2026 results on August 13, and recent previews suggest analysts expect another double-digit earnings increase, which can support sentiment ahead of the print. What to Expect From Applied Materials’ Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s short-interest update appears to be data-noisy, showing zero shares outstanding and no meaningful days-to-cover signal, so it is unlikely to be a real trading driver.
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials remains part of a broader semiconductor sector that is experiencing profit-taking and valuation-driven consolidation after a powerful AI rally, which is weighing on sentiment across the group. Semiconductor Crossroads: Healthy Consolidation or Deeper Repricing?
• Negative Sentiment: The pullback in semiconductor names suggests investors are locking in gains and reassessing high expectations, which is pressuring AMAT along with the rest of the sector despite solid fundamentals.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This trade represents a 6.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total transaction of $14,398,392.09. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. The trade was a 14.17% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AMAT. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Barclays raised their target price on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $525.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $593.84.

Applied Materials Trading Down 4.7%

AMAT stock opened at $536.25 on Friday. 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 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market cap of $425.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.35, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.57. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $544.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $423.10.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

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.