Alight Capital Management LP Has $7.71 Million Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Alight Capital Management LP trimmed its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 40.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 30,000 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 20,000 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up approximately 2.0% of Alight Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Alight Capital Management LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $26,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Argus raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. B. Riley Financial raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Seaport Research Partners started coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, May 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $465.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $489.16.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total transaction of $5,092,941.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at $79,534,609.56. The trade was a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total value of $25,264,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 356,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 189,767 shares of company stock valued at $107,769,409. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Citi raised its price target on Applied Materials, boosting confidence that AI infrastructure spending and demand for memory-chip manufacturing tools will keep growth strong. Applied Materials surges as Citi lifts target on AI demand boom
• Positive Sentiment: The company unveiled SENZ, an integrated AI/AR smart-glasses visual platform, expanding its story beyond semiconductor equipment into next-generation optics and wearable tech. EssilorLuxottica and Applied Materials Join Forces to Advance Augmented Reality Optics Platforms for Next-Generation Smart Glasses
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials and EssilorLuxottica announced a long-term partnership to develop AR and AI smart-eyewear optics, suggesting an additional growth avenue and validating AMAT’s materials expertise. EssilorLuxottica, Applied Materials strike deal to develop smart glasses, AR technology
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports highlighted record highs and strong momentum for chip-equipment stocks, with AMAT benefiting from the broader AI-driven rally in semiconductor capital equipment. Applied Materials Stock Is One Of the S&P 500 Leaders Today. It’s AI.

Applied Materials Trading Up 4.3%

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $592.92 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $470.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.67, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $441.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $360.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $154.46 and a fifty-two week high of $623.35.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

About Applied Materials

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.