Larson Financial Group LLC Has $24.95 Million Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 60.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 121,881 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 46,055 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises 0.9% of Larson Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $24,954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Grandfield & Dodd LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 6.9% during the third quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $55,180,000 after purchasing an additional 17,397 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.9% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,101,772 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $635,057,000 after purchasing an additional 145,050 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its position in Applied Materials by 13,360.6% in the 2nd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 694,431 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $127,129,000 after purchasing an additional 689,272 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in Applied Materials by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 96,712 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $19,801,000 after purchasing an additional 17,288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 82.2% during the 3rd quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 26,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,512,000 after buying an additional 12,132 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $346.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $335.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $264.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $274.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.43, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.65. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $395.95.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.38 EPS. The firm’s 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. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on AMAT shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. KGI Securities upgraded Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Applied Materials from $350.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Applied Materials from $315.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.46.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. 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.