J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Sells 13,106 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG lowered its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 186,490 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 13,106 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises about 1.1% of J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $63,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares in the company, valued at $87,184,361.88. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805 over the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials rallied after CEO Gary Dickerson said chipmakers have “tremendous visibility” into demand, implying the AI investment cycle could support equipment orders for years rather than quarters. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Jumps after CEO Says AI Chip Demand Has Years to Run
• Positive Sentiment: Meta Platforms’ reported plan to begin manufacturing an in-house AI chip helped spark a broader rally in semiconductor equipment stocks, including Applied Materials, on expectations that AI infrastructure spending will remain strong. Applied Materials stock jumps as Meta AI chip plan lifts semiconductor names
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel and Needham both raised their price targets on AMAT and kept buy ratings, reinforcing the view that improving fundamentals and AI-driven demand could support further upside. Applied Materials PT Raised to $650 at Stifel
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials was removed from several Russell value-oriented indices in late June, a classification change that reflects the stock’s shift toward being viewed more as an AI/semiconductor growth name than a value stock. How Investors Are Reacting To Applied Materials (AMAT) Being Dropped From Key Russell Value Indices
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no reported short interest as of July 10, offering little evidence of bearish positioning from the latest filing.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $710.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Seaport Research Partners started coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, May 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $589.48.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $602.50 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $478.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.57. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $154.46 and a twelve month high of $739.67. The company’s fifty day moving average is $517.90 and its 200 day moving average is $403.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.13 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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

Applied Materials Company Profile

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.