Profund Advisors LLC Sells 10,321 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Profund Advisors LLC reduced its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 99,969 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 10,321 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises approximately 1.5% of Profund Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position. Profund Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $51,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Harborfront Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $27,000. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Curry Webb Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. New Street Research lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $710.00 target price (up from $550.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Craig Hallum lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $642.00 to $563.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 28th. Thirty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $632.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $479.25, for a total transaction of $3,594,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,637,780.25. The trade was a 5.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total transaction of $465,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 25,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,877,960. This trade represents a 3.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 9,225 shares of company stock valued at $4,454,181 in the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials’ planned move to raise its Besi stake to 20% is strengthening its exposure to hybrid bonding, a packaging technology that could benefit from rising AI-chip complexity. TIKR describes a bullish long-term scenario, with a potential price target of approximately $806 versus a roughly $628 Wall Street target. Applied Materials hybrid bonding analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights a quarter with 51% growth and argues that AMAT trades at about 23 times forward earnings, a valuation that may look reasonable if AI-related semiconductor-equipment demand remains strong. The company also recently exceeded earnings and revenue estimates and issued fourth-quarter EPS guidance of $3.82–$4.22. Applied Materials growth and valuation analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: AMAT is attracting unusually high investor attention, but the Zacks reports primarily review the company’s prospects rather than identify a new fundamental catalyst. Zacks Applied Materials investor attention report
• Negative Sentiment: Compared with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, Applied Materials has shown a flatter revenue trajectory and less consistent quarter-over-quarter growth. That comparison may reinforce concerns that AMAT’s elevated valuation already discounts substantial AI-driven demand. Applied Materials versus Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Applied Materials Trading Down 7.5%

Applied Materials stock opened at $390.09 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $457.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $443.63. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $203.40 and a 12 month high of $739.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market cap of $309.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.60.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc is a technology company that supplies equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its products help customers fabricate the integrated circuits and other components used in computers, mobile devices, data centers, automobiles and a range of connected technologies.

The company’s offerings include systems for materials engineering, wafer fabrication, inspection and process control, along with equipment and services designed to improve manufacturing productivity and yield.