DAVENPORT & Co LLC Sells 6,815 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

DAVENPORT & Co LLC decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,640 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 6,815 shares during the quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $9,956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Traveka Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,707,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 657 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $135,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Sunflower Bank N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% during the third quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 3,287 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $673,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% during the third quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $252,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $369.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $293.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.80, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.65. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $344.45 and its 200 day moving average is $273.54. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $395.95. 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Applied Materials’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief accounting officer 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $315.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $350.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective 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. Susquehanna upgraded shares of 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 research report on Sunday, January 11th. Finally, Summit Insights raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials News Summary

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.

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.