Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 217,537 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 24.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 659,689 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 217,537 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for 1.4% of Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $225,475,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Wealth Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.9% during the first quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 531 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $181,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. One Day In July LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 2.4% in the first quarter. One Day In July LLC now owns 1,089 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $372,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1.3% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 2,082 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $712,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Warther Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,908 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT opened at $536.25 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $425.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $544.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $423.10. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $154.46 and a 1-year high of $739.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total transaction of $6,335,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 346,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,608,106.26. The trade was a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $735.22, for a total transaction of $14,704,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,599,843 shares in the company, valued at $1,176,236,570.46. This trade represents a 1.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup increased their target price on Applied Materials from $550.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Argus increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Applied Materials from $525.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $593.84.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is still viewed favorably versus a peer in advanced packaging, with commentary highlighting its AI-related packaging exposure, broad chipmaking portfolio, and high-margin services as reasons it may be a safer long-term bet. AMAT vs. Q: Which Advanced Packaging Stock is a Safer Bet Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to point to AI-led semiconductor demand, with Applied Materials repeatedly cited as one of the stocks benefiting from ongoing chip investment and stronger equipment spending. Buy These 5 Semiconductor Stocks Charged Up by AI Enthusiasm
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials announced it will report fiscal third-quarter 2026 results on August 13, and recent previews suggest analysts expect another double-digit earnings increase, which can support sentiment ahead of the print. What to Expect From Applied Materials’ Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s short-interest update appears to be data-noisy, showing zero shares outstanding and no meaningful days-to-cover signal, so it is unlikely to be a real trading driver.
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials remains part of a broader semiconductor sector that is experiencing profit-taking and valuation-driven consolidation after a powerful AI rally, which is weighing on sentiment across the group. Semiconductor Crossroads: Healthy Consolidation or Deeper Repricing?
• Negative Sentiment: The pullback in semiconductor names suggests investors are locking in gains and reassessing high expectations, which is pressuring AMAT along with the rest of the sector despite solid fundamentals.

Applied Materials 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.