Elefante Mark B Grows Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Elefante Mark B boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 195.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,978 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,953 shares during the period. Elefante Mark B’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,224,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. IFG Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1,008.1% in the 2nd quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 36,156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $6,619,000 after buying an additional 32,893 shares in the last quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC increased its position 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 worth $55,180,000 after acquiring an additional 17,397 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 23.0% in the second quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 12,643 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 2,363 shares in the last quarter. Sienna Gestion boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 10.2% in the second quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 113,221 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $18,924,000 after purchasing an additional 10,468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its stake in Applied Materials by 13,360.6% during the 2nd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 694,431 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $127,129,000 after purchasing an additional 689,272 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total value of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,609 shares of company stock worth $2,914,628. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT stock opened at $369.83 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.74 and a 1 year high of $376.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $293.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.85, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.70. 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’s fifty day moving average is $302.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $241.35.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. 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 37.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Morgan Stanley set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Summit Insights upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, KGI Securities raised Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.04.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Earnings and guidance outperformed — AMAT beat Q1 EPS and revenue estimates and management gave strong growth guidance, which has been cited as a primary driver of renewed investor optimism. 3 Under-the-Radar Earnings Surprises Could Signal a New Trend (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and target raises — Zacks upgraded AMAT to a “Strong Buy” and several banks (Goldman, UBS, Barclays, Stifel) have lifted price targets and ratings in recent days, supporting upward momentum. Applied Materials (AMAT) Upgraded to Strong Buy: Here’s Why
• Positive Sentiment: Large bullish options flow — unusually heavy call buying (~97,138 calls, ~+231% vs. average) suggests traders are positioning for further upside or hedging long exposure, which can amplify near‑term gains.
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst commentary — some outlets highlight differing views across analysts (valuation vs. secular cyclical upside), creating variable near‑term sentiment despite the bullish headlines. Analysts Have Conflicting Sentiments on These Technology Companies
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reporting anomaly — filings show zero/NaN short interest and a 0.0 days‑to‑cover metric; this is almost certainly a data/reporting error and not meaningful for positioning today.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares (~$1.8M) on Feb 17, trimming his stake by ~3.5%. Routine liquidity sales are common, but some investors view insider sales as a modest negative signal. SEC Form 4

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.