Element Squared LLC Buys Shares of 6,263 Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Element Squared LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 6,263 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,140,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,731,523,000 after acquiring an additional 330,197 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 119.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 40.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Applied Materials by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,470,835 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,947,891,000 after purchasing an additional 373,012 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,858,543,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Erste Group Bank upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. HC Wainwright set a $850.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, HSBC started coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $517.00 price objective for the company. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $553.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,695,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,006,503,625. The trade was a 4.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 4.1%

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $723.00 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $486.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $384.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $574.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.89, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $154.46 and a 1-year high of $739.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 19.91%.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: KeyBanc, Cantor Fitzgerald, and Bank of America all turned more bullish on AMAT, with multiple price-target hikes and fresh upside calls ahead of earnings, reinforcing the view that demand for chip-making equipment remains strong. Why Applied Materials Shares Are Surging Monday
• Positive Sentiment: The stock has been one of the biggest winners in the semiconductor space, with June marking its best monthly rally since 1975 as AI infrastructure spending lifted estimates and investor sentiment. Stock Of The Day: Is This The Top For Applied Materials?
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group raised its FY2026 and FY2027 earnings estimates for Applied Materials, signaling confidence that earnings growth can continue beyond the current year. Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles note the stock is technically very extended and “overbought,” which suggests momentum is strong but also raises the risk of a near-term pullback after the huge run-up. Stock Of The Day: Is This The Top For Applied Materials?
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials was also added to the Russell Top 50 Index, which can boost visibility and passive fund ownership, though the impact is more about flows than fundamentals. Applied Materials (AMAT) Joins Russell Top 50 After Leaving Value Indexes

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.