National Mutual Insurance Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives Increases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

National Mutual Insurance Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 233.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 105,000 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 73,500 shares during the period. National Mutual Insurance Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives’ holdings in Applied Materials were worth $21,498,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AMAT. Mutual Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 6,499 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,331,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Lee Financial Co purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $287,000. Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 9.0% during the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 26,646 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,455,000 after buying an additional 2,193 shares during the period. Everhart Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials by 1.6% during the third quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,259 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,691,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service grew its position in Applied Materials by 2.6% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,257,690 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $462,239,000 after buying an additional 56,147 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $322.32 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $255.83 billion, a PE ratio of 37.13, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.67. The company’s fifty day moving average is $281.15 and its 200 day moving average is $227.23. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $344.60.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The company’s revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.32 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho upgraded AMAT to Outperform and raised its price target to $370, citing accelerating WFE (wafer fab equipment) spending as a multi‑year tailwind. Mizuho Upgrades Applied Materials (AMAT) to Outperform on Global WFE Tailwinds
• Positive Sentiment: Key analysts (including KeyBanc and others cited across outlets) have raised price targets (KeyBanc to $380) and highlighted AMAT’s diversified position in deposition/etch and benefits from increased chip manufacturing intensity. Mizuho upgrades Applied Materials to Outperform as WFE spending accelerates
• Positive Sentiment: Several buy‑side pieces (Seeking Alpha, analyst blogs) call AMAT an attractive buy into the upcoming Q1 report, pointing to semiconductor momentum and durable multi‑year tailwinds. Applied Materials: Attractive Buy Ahead Of The Q1 2026 Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity shows large institutional/speculative positioning (“whales”), which can amplify moves in either direction but doesn’t guarantee fundamental change. Traders should watch open interest and expiries. This Is What Whales Are Betting On Applied Materials
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry discussion is underway about AMAT’s ability to challenge ASML at the high end — a long‑term strategic theme that could support upside but is uncertain and execution‑dependent. Can AMAT Break ASML’s Monopoly?
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks highlights rising trade and cost pressures that could offset semiconductor momentum — a nearer‑term risk to margins and guidance that may be pressuring the stock today. Applied Materials leads Zacks’ latest Analyst Blog
• Negative Sentiment: Technical/valuation factors: AMAT has run sharply higher over the past year and now trades at an elevated multiple (PE and PEG above historical norms). Higher trading volume on the pullback suggests profit‑taking and short‑term selling pressure. (Background market data.)

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho set a $370.00 price target on Applied Materials and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Barclays upgraded shares of Applied Materials from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $250.00 to $360.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $290.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $385.00 price objective on the stock. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $298.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,127,653.89. This represents a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. Insiders sold a total of 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

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.