Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Holdings Lifted by Farther Finance Advisors LLC

Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 31.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 42,885 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,315 shares during the quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $21,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.6% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 80,212,518 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $57,993,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,237,685 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 85.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 69,525,842 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $50,267,184,000 after purchasing an additional 32,018,892 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 19.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 7,808,207 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,645,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246,876 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Applied Materials by 16.2% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,713,599 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,576,932,000 after buying an additional 1,073,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $5,252,863,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. HC Wainwright set a $850.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $575.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $640.20.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total value of $394,806.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,732,245.36. This trade represents a 18.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $479.25, for a total value of $3,594,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 128,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,637,780.25. This trade represents a 5.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 9,225 shares of company stock valued at $4,454,181. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: New UCLA partnership supports future growth. Applied Materials and UCLA Engineering are joining the company’s EPIC Center to accelerate the commercialization of semiconductor research, potentially shortening the path from laboratory breakthroughs to high-volume manufacturing. Applied Materials and UCLA Engineering Accelerate Semiconductor Innovation at the EPIC Center
• Positive Sentiment: Strong AI-related chipmaking demand remains a key catalyst. A former Applied Materials executive said TSMC could still be underbuilding despite plans for as much as $64 billion in capital spending, implying continued demand for wafer-fabrication equipment. TSMC Plans Up to $64 Billion in Capex
• Positive Sentiment: AGS recurring revenue and services are gaining momentum. Analyst commentary points to AI-enabled services, recurring revenue and expanding fab demand as potential drivers for Applied Materials’ AGS business through 2030. Can Applied Materials Sustain Momentum in Its AGS Business?
• Positive Sentiment: Recent comparisons with Qualcomm, Marvell, Lam Research and KLA highlight Applied Materials’ improving revenue trajectory, dependable earnings and exposure to increasing chip complexity and AI infrastructure spending. Applied Materials vs. Qualcomm
• Neutral Sentiment: Jim Cramer argued that Applied Materials offers more than a simple earnings-multiple story, while other commentary noted the stock’s exceptional prior-year performance. Those views support the growth case but also raise expectations after the major run-up. Jim Cramer Sees More to Applied Materials
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling is weighing on sentiment. A report attributed the recent weakness to insider share sales, giving investors a reason to lock in profits after AMAT’s strong advance and reinforcing concerns about elevated expectations and valuation. Applied Materials Stock Falls After Insider Selling

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock traded down $11.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $509.57. The stock had a trading volume of 6,737,583 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,891,009. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $203.40 and a fifty-two week high of $739.67. The firm has a market cap of $404.39 billion, a PE ratio of 43.93, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $488.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $480.57.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The business’s revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 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, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Applied Materials Company Profile

Applied Materials, Inc is a global supplier of equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductor chips, flat-panel displays and other advanced electronic products. Its technologies help customers build and enhance materials at the nanoscale, supporting processes such as deposition, etching, inspection, metrology and packaging.

The company’s offerings include semiconductor manufacturing systems, process-control and inspection equipment, and services designed to improve the performance, productivity and longevity of production equipment.