Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by Pinnacle Associates Ltd.

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.3% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 92,679 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,171 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for approximately 0.7% of Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $67,007,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Smith Shellnut Wilson LLC ADV purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $385,000. Mokosak Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $291,000. First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its stake in Applied Materials by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 2,296 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,660,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $277,000. Finally, TSA Wealth Managment LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 48.5% in the second quarter. TSA Wealth Managment LLC now owns 1,013 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $732,000 after buying an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of several research reports. HSBC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $683.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Applied Materials from $515.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Susquehanna lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $575.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $740.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. One equities research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $640.17.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $507.18 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $564.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $444.89. The company has a market capitalization of $402.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $154.46 and a fifty-two week high of $739.67. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.58% and a net margin of 30.05%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.22 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 given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Record quarterly performance: Fiscal Q3 revenue rose 24.8% year over year to $9.12 billion, ahead of the $8.99 billion consensus estimate, while adjusted EPS of $3.50 exceeded expectations. AI infrastructure demand, advanced packaging and memory spending supported growth. Applied Materials Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y
• Positive Sentiment: Above-consensus outlook: Management projected fiscal Q4 revenue of approximately $9.8 billion to $10.8 billion and EPS of $3.82 to $4.22, both above analyst expectations. The company also pointed to stronger systems growth and unusually long customer visibility into fiscal 2027 and beyond. Applied Materials Forecasts Quarterly Revenue Above Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and institutional support: JPMorgan, RBC, TD Cowen, B. Riley, Needham and other firms maintained positive ratings or raised price targets. Soros Capital also reportedly added AMAT among several semiconductor positions, reinforcing the longer-term AI and chip-cycle investment case. Soros Capital Loads Up on Semiconductor Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Options imply a possible rebound: Derivatives-market data indicates traders expect the pullback could be temporary, although elevated volatility reflects uncertainty over the stock’s near-term direction. Applied Materials Options Data
• Negative Sentiment: Expectations were exceptionally high: Despite the earnings beat and upbeat guidance, investors wanted faster growth and clearer evidence that AMAT is outpacing rivals in semiconductor manufacturing equipment. Concerns about competition, margins and the pace of systems growth overshadowed the headline results. Applied Materials Slips as Investors Seek Faster Growth
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market pressure added to selling: Weaker July retail-sales data, profit-taking after record highs and a semiconductor-sector selloff weighed on AMAT and other AI-related stocks.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $79,534,609.56. This trade represents a 6.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,695,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,006,503,625. This trade represents a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.