The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Reduces Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 910,031 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 11,933 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.11% of Applied Materials worth $657,933,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 2.1% in the second quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC now owns 961 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $695,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 2.1% in the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $725,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.9% in the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 13.0% in the second quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $646.00 to $642.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $657.76.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $735.22, for a total transaction of $14,704,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,599,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,176,236,570.46. This trade represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 276,692 shares of company stock worth $169,030,834 in the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $479.76 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $556.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $455.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $154.46 and a 12-month high of $739.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $380.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.36, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 38.02% and a net margin of 30.05%.The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.48 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 18.28%.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure is supporting a new growth cycle. Chipmakers are increasing spending on advanced DRAM, high-bandwidth memory, leading-edge logic and advanced packaging—all areas that benefit Applied Materials’ semiconductor equipment business. The company’s latest quarter showed revenue growth of 24.8% year over year, with earnings and revenue exceeding analyst expectations. Applied Materials Enters a New AI-Driven Growth Cycle
• Positive Sentiment: Services and parts demand remain resilient. Applied Materials’ Applied Global Services (AGS) division reportedly reached record revenue and expanded margins, helped by subscription services, parts demand and higher semiconductor-fab utilization. This recurring revenue can provide stability across equipment cycles. AMAT’s AGS Business Gains Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see potential upside after the recent selloff. Consensus price targets imply roughly 35% upside, while another report cited an average target near $641. However, these targets depend on continued earnings-estimate improvements and sustained AI spending. Analyst Upside Potential for AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho remains constructive but lowered its target. The firm reduced its price target from $650 to $590 while maintaining an “outperform” rating, reflecting a more cautious near-term outlook despite expected upside. Mizuho AMAT Price Target Update
• Negative Sentiment: China exposure is the main overhang. Tighter export controls and the emergence of Chinese domestic immersion DUV lithography systems are raising concerns about Applied Materials’ competitiveness and future China sales. Reports caution that not all of the company’s approximately $2.087 billion in quarterly China revenue is immediately threatened, but investors are still pricing in greater regulatory and competitive risk. Applied Materials’ China Problem Is Getting Worse

Applied Materials Company 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.