Cullen Capital Management LLC Purchases 2,030 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Cullen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 10.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,030 shares during the period. Cullen Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,544,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Guerra Advisors Inc bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,095,782.24. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,127,653.89. This trade represents a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898 in the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price-target lift — a recent analyst move raised AMAT’s price target by ~17%, signaling renewed analyst confidence in the company’s medium-term outlook and providing a bullish anchor for investors. Applied Materials (AMAT) price target increased by 17.14% to 329.63
• Positive Sentiment: Street expects Q1 upside — Morgan Stanley published a note expecting Applied to surpass Q1 estimates, reinforcing a near-term earnings beat narrative that can support the stock if results meet or beat. Morgan Stanley expects Applied Materials to surpass Q1 estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Earnings-beat history and growth profile — analysts and Zacks highlight AMAT’s history of beating estimates and its strong growth characteristics, which supports investor expectations for continued outperformance into upcoming reports. Will Applied Materials (AMAT) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/positioning debate — commentary asks whether AMAT is “too late” after a large one?year gain; these pieces frame investor debate over valuation and rotation rather than providing a clear catalyst. Is It Too Late To Consider Applied Materials (AMAT) After Its 80% One Year Surge?
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data appears unreliable — an item flagged a large increase in short interest but reported 0 shares (data anomaly); this is not a clear driver given the suspect numbers and should be treated cautiously.
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy intraday selling despite positive developments — reports note a sharp intraday plunge (midday selling) even though the company had favorable items in its favor; that suggests profit-taking, headline-driven flows or rotation out of chip-capex names pressured the stock. Applied Materials Stock (AMAT) Plunges despite Hopes for a ‘More Constructive Direction’
• Negative Sentiment: Underperforming the broader market on the day — market commentary explains AMAT fell more than the broader indices, consistent with sector rotation and headline-driven volatility that can accelerate declines during high-volume selling days. Here’s Why Applied Materials (AMAT) Fell More Than Broader Market

Applied Materials Stock Down 6.6%

Applied Materials stock opened at $297.60 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $236.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.29, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.70. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $344.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.61. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $285.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $229.79.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.32 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, January 12th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $273.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Mizuho set a $370.00 target price on Applied Materials and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Twenty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $311.04.

About Applied Materials

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.