Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Buys 3,279 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 31.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 13,788 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,279 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,826,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,920,984 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $7,125,265,000 after buying an additional 391,540 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 21,026,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,836,807,000 after acquiring an additional 407,282 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in Applied Materials by 72.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 13,564,120 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,483,183,000 after acquiring an additional 5,700,349 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 13.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,936,363 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,635,992,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075,525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,604,002,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $322.51 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $288.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $344.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.98 billion, a PE ratio of 37.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 24.67%.The company had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.32 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. As a group, 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 21.20%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,127,653.89. The trade was a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Susquehanna upgraded Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $400.00 in a report on Sunday, January 11th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $385.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho set a $370.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Twenty-four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $315.15.

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.