William Blair Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

William Blair Investment Management LLC reduced its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 21.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 35,164 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 9,336 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $9,037,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Godsey & Gibb Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,298 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,227 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 4,582 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,178,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials reported fiscal Q2 sales of $7.91 billion and net income of $2.81 billion, topping expectations and showing continued solid execution. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Up 11.8% After Raising Q3 Outlook And Expanding AI Packaging Alliance
• Positive Sentiment: The company lifted Q3 2026 revenue guidance to about $8.95 billion, suggesting management sees ongoing strength in semiconductor spending. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Up 11.8% After Raising Q3 Outlook And Expanding AI Packaging Alliance
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials expanded its AI packaging and process innovation efforts, including new collaboration with partners such as Broadcom and SCREEN Semiconductor Solutions, which could support longer-term growth in advanced chip packaging. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is Up 11.8% After Raising Q3 Outlook And Expanding AI Packaging Alliance
• Positive Sentiment: The newly announced SCREEN partnership at the EPIC Center adds another innovation partner focused on advanced wafer cleaning, which may help improve yields and accelerate next-generation chip production. Applied Materials Partners with SCREEN To Bring Advanced Wafer Cleaning Technologies to EPIC Center
• Neutral Sentiment: An insider filing showed CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares, but the transaction was small relative to his remaining stake and is unlikely to materially affect the stock. Applied Materials, Inc. CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares
• Negative Sentiment: A broad market commentary piece warned that momentum stocks can reverse after strong runs, which may temper enthusiasm for recently extended winners like AMAT. Intel, AMD, and Other Momentum Stocks Look Unstoppable. Look Again.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $454.89 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $361.16 billion, a PE ratio of 42.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.66. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $153.47 and a 52-week high of $456.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company’s 50 day moving average is $391.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $329.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total transaction of $116,370.96. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,280 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,461.60. This represents a 5.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $517.00 price target for the company. Finally, Seaport Research Partners began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, May 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $465.14.

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.