Hilltop Holdings Inc. Acquires 1,530 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 153.5% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,527 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,530 shares during the quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $864,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 48.7% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,184,361.88. The trade was a 14.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total value of $6,335,300.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 346,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $219,608,106.26. The trade was a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $536.25 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $154.46 and a 52 week high of $739.67. The firm has a market cap of $425.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.57. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $544.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $424.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The business’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 firm posted $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 year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $502.00 to $647.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $593.84.

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.