Czech National Bank Purchases 6,245 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Czech National Bank lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 210,063 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,245 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $53,984,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 150.0% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investor letters point to improving wafer‑fab spending visibility, which supports AMAT’s order outlook and medium‑term revenue cadence. Applied Materials (AMAT) Surged on Improving Wafer-Fab Spending Visibility
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple fund manager letters and coverage highlight strong AI‑chip demand and resilient operating performance at Applied, supporting upside to margins and backlog. Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) Gained on Strong AI Chip Demand and Resilient Operating Performance
• Positive Sentiment: U.S. policy initiatives and a large investment consortium aimed at semiconductor, energy and critical‑minerals supply chains increase the addressable market for equipment suppliers like AMAT over the long run. US Semiconductor Push Adds New Thread To Applied Materials Story
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street sentiment remains constructive in recent coverage, with analysts and bulls pointing to AMAT’s strong fundamentals and reasonable forward multiple given secular AI/capex tailwinds. Wall Street Bulls Look Optimistic About Applied Materials (AMAT): Should You Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Several “is AMAT a buy?” and trending‑stock pieces summarize bullish theses (valuation, AI exposure) but contain broader market commentary rather than new company-specific catalysts. Is Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) A Good Stock To Buy Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports show a large reported “increase” in short interest for March but the published figures appear erroneous (zero shares / NaN); treat that data point cautiously until corrected.
• Negative Sentiment: Offsetting the positives, broader tech/ETF outflows and profit‑taking in high‑beta tech names are applying near‑term pressure on AMAT shares despite strong underlying demand signals.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total value of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,753,615. This represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AMAT. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $360.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $369.34 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $395.95. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $344.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $293.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.65.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.