Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Acquires 2,163 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 12,753 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,163 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,611,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,707,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 7.0% during the third quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 657 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $135,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.4% in the third quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 3,287 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $673,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% in the third quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Welch Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.0% during the third quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $356,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

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

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat consensus — EPS of $2.38 topped estimates and revenue of $7.01B beat expectations, evidence that services and AI-related demand are offsetting cyclical headwinds. This beat is the primary catalyst for the rally. Applied Materials Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Fall Y/Y
• Positive Sentiment: Strong guidance and AI-driven order cadence — management set Q2 EPS and revenue guidance above Street consensus and highlighted surging orders tied to AI processors and tightening memory demand, supporting a view of sustained equipment spending. Applied Materials jumps as AI demand drives chipmaking tool orders
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and price-target increases — multiple firms raised ratings/targets (examples cited include Needham, Mizuho, Citigroup, B. Riley), which amplifies buying momentum and reduces near-term downside from sell-side skepticism.
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory settlement resolved — Applied reached a $252.5M civil settlement with the U.S. Department of Commerce over prior export issues; DOJ and SEC closed related probes without action. The payment is a one-time cost but it removes regulatory overhang going forward. Applied Materials Reaches Resolution with the U.S. Department of Commerce
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns and bear case commentary — some analysts and op-eds argue the stock’s run has left limited upside and warn of pricey multiples; this creates the risk of profit-taking if future execution or guidance lags. Applied Materials: Little Opportunity Left After A Monstrous Run

Applied Materials Trading Up 8.1%

Applied Materials stock opened at $354.91 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $376.32. The company has a market cap of $281.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 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. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $295.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.38.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 38.52%. The company’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 21.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday. Finally, KGI Securities upgraded shares of Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday. Twenty-eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $361.03.

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.