Principal Securities Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Principal Securities Inc. reduced its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,746 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,600 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $10,471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 52.4% during the 4th quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 147.2% during the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Up 11.2%

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $552.64 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51. The firm has a market cap of $438.77 billion, a PE ratio of 51.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $154.46 and a one year high of $557.62. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $422.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $351.11.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $502.00 price target (up from $454.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 15th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Summit Insights upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $575.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $483.03.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CFO Brice Hill sold 2,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.86, for a total value of $1,247,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 136,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,901,331.18. The trade was a 1.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total transaction of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% 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 have sold 53,896 shares of company stock valued at $27,135,121. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target on Applied Materials, adding to the bullish analyst backdrop and helping reinforce the stock’s upside momentum. Top 5 Strong Buy Stocks to Invest In
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays reiterated an Overweight rating on Applied Materials, citing continued investment in new chip supply and AI infrastructure demand. Applied Materials and KLA Are Surging. Why You Should Buy the Stocks, Says This Analyst.
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is being highlighted as a key beneficiary of high-bandwidth memory and broader AI hardware spending, which supports long-term semiconductor equipment demand. Applied Materials (AMAT) Is One Of the Best High-Bandwidth Memory Stocks To Buy
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s new $500 million Singapore manufacturing expansion is being viewed as a strategic move to support AI chip demand and expand capacity for future growth. Applied Materials Expands Singapore Manufacturing to Support AI Chip Demand

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.