Renaissance Group LLC Sells 3,069 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Renaissance Group LLC decreased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 204,410 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,069 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up about 1.6% of Renaissance Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Renaissance Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $41,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 28.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at $410,000. Valmark Advisers Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials by 21.1% in the 2nd quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 2,259 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $414,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 45.2% in the 2nd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 6,144 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,125,000 after acquiring an additional 1,913 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Citi raised its price target sharply to $400 (from $250) and reiterated a Buy ahead of earnings, signaling increased analyst confidence and likely supporting buying interest. Citi Jumps Applied Materials (AMAT) Target Ahead of Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Pre-earnings research (Zacks) expects AMAT to beat estimates, highlighting the company’s revenue/earnings mix as favorable — a potential short-term catalyst that can lift the stock on an upside surprise. Applied Materials (AMAT) Expected to Beat Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks also flags AMAT as a strong momentum stock, which can attract momentum-driven flows into the shares ahead of a likely volatility event (earnings). Here’s Why Applied Materials (AMAT) is a Strong Momentum Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: An earnings release and investor event are scheduled for Feb. 12; this is the immediate catalyst and will drive intraday moves depending on results and guidance. Applied Materials (AMAT) to Release Earnings on Thursday
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest figures appear to be a data glitch (showing 0 shares and NaN changes), so there’s no clear short-covering signal from that dataset at present.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent coverage flagged a sharp pullback tied to export-control uncertainty despite robust AI-driven equipment demand — a reminder that geopolitical/export risks can quickly reverse sentiment if guidance or commentary raises red flags. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Down 11.6% After AI-Driven Equipment Demand Meets Export-Control Uncertainty

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Susquehanna raised shares of Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $180.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $275.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $310.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $350.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $315.15.

Applied Materials Trading Up 6.1%

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $322.51 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $344.60. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $288.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $231.21. 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 firm has a market cap of $255.98 billion, a PE ratio of 37.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.70.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.20%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,127,653.89. The trade was a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.