Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Purchased by Argent Trust Co

Argent Trust Co raised its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,020 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,499 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Marquette Asset Management LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 150.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $31,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $35,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade pushed the stock higher intraday — a broker upgrade cited improved fundamentals/visibility and sent shares up before broader market weakness set in. Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading 4.5% Higher After Analyst Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reiterated a bullish view with forecasts for strong price appreciation, reinforcing investor confidence that equipment makers like AMAT will benefit from sustained AI and memory capex. Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Industry research highlights that AI spending is shifting value to semiconductor equipment suppliers — a structural tailwind for AMAT as fabs invest in logic, DRAM, HBM and advanced packaging. The AI spending boom is creating winners beyond the ‘Mag 7.’ Why one sector could see big gains.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary (Zacks) notes AMAT is scaling up exposure to logic, DRAM and advanced packaging (GAA, hybrid bonding, HBM), which supports multi‑year revenue growth assumptions. AMAT Scales Up Logic, DRAM & Advanced Packaging: What’s Ahead?
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor Q: “Is it too late?” coverage and articles looking at valuation after a big one‑year run can increase profit‑taking; these pieces examine multiples and momentum without new company fundamentals. Is It Too Late To Consider Applied Materials (AMAT) After A 130% One Year Surge?
• Neutral Sentiment: Questions about outperforming benchmarks—coverage comparing AMAT to the S&P 500—are framing some investors’ benchmark/rebalancing decisions rather than signaling near‑term fundamental change. Is Applied Materials Stock Outperforming the S&P 500?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest entries for late Feb look erroneous/incomplete (zeros/NaN); investors should treat those figures cautiously and watch for corrected filings. (Data reported 2/25–2/26)
• Negative Sentiment: Sector sell‑off after Nvidia’s earnings created downward pressure—concerns about the sustainability of AI capex flow prompted a pullback in AMAT despite recent strength. A Look At Applied Materials (AMAT) Valuation After Sector Sell Off On AI Spending Concerns
• Negative Sentiment: News items grouping AMAT with other semiconductor names that are falling amplify momentum selling and may trigger short‑term downside as traders reduce exposure. Applied Materials, Broadcom, Lam Research, Western Digital, and Allegro MicroSystems shares are falling, what you need to know

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,612 shares of company stock worth $4,639,807. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Susquehanna upgraded Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and increased their target price for the company from $180.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. BNP Paribas Exane raised Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $372.30 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $395.95. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $317.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $249.53. The firm has a market cap of $295.46 billion, a PE ratio of 38.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.83%.

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.