Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Purchased by Public Sector Pension Investment Board

Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 336.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 729,612 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 562,631 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned 0.09% of Applied Materials worth $149,381,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the period. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $410,000. Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.1% during the second quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 6,100 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,133,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 44.3% in the second quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 456 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total value of $155,617.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,127,653.89. This represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AMAT. Bank of America increased their target price on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 14th. Twenty-five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $315.15.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $328.46 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $344.60. The company has a 50 day moving average of $293.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $235.24. The company has a market cap of $260.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.19. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings and revenue beat — AMAT reported $2.38 EPS and $7.01B revenue, topping consensus and demonstrating healthy margins and profitability that underpin investor confidence. Applied Materials (AMAT) Beats Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Strong forward guidance — management set Q2 FY2026 EPS guidance (2.440–2.840) and revenue targets above Street expectations, signaling continued demand for semiconductor equipment driven by AI processors. This guidance is the key driver of the after‑hours rally. Applied Materials forecasts second-quarter sales above estimates
• Positive Sentiment: AI and industry positioning — analysts and commentary point to accelerating AI/HPC capex (DRAM, advanced logic, packaging) and recurring service revenue as structural growth drivers; several firms have raised targets and reiterated Buy ratings ahead of the print. How to Read Applied Materials Earnings: What Signals Move the Stock?
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnerships — Samsung agreed to join AMAT’s new $5B EPIC R&D center, reinforcing customer relationships and R&D scale that support long-term demand and product leadership. Applied Materials Announces Samsung Electronics Will Join the New, Multibillion-Dollar EPIC Center
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory closure reduces uncertainty — the DOJ and SEC have closed related investigations without action, which removes a material legal overhang and clarifies near-term risk. That reduced uncertainty likely helped investor reaction even though a settlement was paid. Applied Materials Announces First Quarter 2026 Results
• Negative Sentiment: $252.5M export settlement — AMAT agreed to pay $252.5M to the U.S. Department of Commerce to resolve alleged export-control violations for certain shipments to China (Nov 2020–Jul 2022). The payment is a one‑time hit and raises compliance/controls questions, though management frames the resolution as in shareholders’ best interest. Applied Materials to pay $252 million to resolve illegal chip exports, US says

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.