Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lessened its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 20.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 237,937 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 60,756 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $61,147,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $19,731,523,000 after purchasing an additional 330,197 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 225.4% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,046,057,000 after purchasing an additional 10,305,182 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 42.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 10,978,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,247,838,000 after buying an additional 3,280,730 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Applied Materials by 19.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,552,132 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,160,443,000 after buying an additional 1,681,911 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. B. Riley Financial raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, March 27th. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $517.00 price target for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $375.90.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Seaport Research initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $500 price target, calling Applied Materials a key beneficiary of AI semiconductor spending. Seaport Research Initiates Coverage of Applied Materials (AMAT) with Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Erste Group raised FY2027 earnings estimates, reinforcing expectations for long-term earnings growth. BofA Remains Bullish on Applied Materials (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary suggests Applied Materials could post an earnings beat in its upcoming report, which is keeping sentiment constructive. Applied Materials (AMAT) Reports Next Week: Wall Street Expects Earnings Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent articles note the stock had fallen more than the broader market in the prior session, but those moves appear secondary to the stronger analyst-driven optimism. Here’s Why Applied Materials (AMAT) Fell More Than Broader Market

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $435.18 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The firm has a market cap of $345.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $371.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $311.19. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $153.47 and a 1-year high of $438.04.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.14 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 21.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.