Baer Investment Advisory LLC Acquires Shares of 951 Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Baer Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 951 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $325,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 30.1% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,747,000 after purchasing an additional 3,469 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 59.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $77,383,000 after purchasing an additional 157,426 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly bullish on Applied Materials, with Zacks upgrading the stock to strong-buy and other recent research highlighting AMAT as a key beneficiary of the AI semiconductor equipment cycle. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage says Applied Materials is benefiting from accelerating growth in AI-related chip demand, with record earnings momentum and a new Street-high target reinforcing the bull case. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials also discussed DRAM and advanced packaging innovations tied to AI-driven semiconductor growth, which supports the view that its product mix remains well positioned for the current cycle. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Some articles question whether AMAT is becoming too expensive after its rally, suggesting valuation concerns could limit upside if growth expectations cool. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Michael Burry reportedly added to short bets against Applied Materials and other chip names, adding a bearish sentiment overlay on the semiconductor sector. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Applied Materials CEO Gary Dickerson disclosed two recent stock sales totaling more than 78,000 shares, which can weigh on investor sentiment even though he still owns a large position. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks, including AMAT, also came under pressure in broader sector selloffs as investors worried that AI-driven chip demand may be cooling and took profits after a strong rally. Article Title

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $603.04 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $478.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.62, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.57. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $154.46 and a one year high of $739.67. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $499.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $391.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $553.56.

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.