Jones Financial Companies Lllp Boosts Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 31.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 611,771 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 146,353 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp owned 0.08% of Applied Materials worth $442,310,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 80,212,518 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $57,993,650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,237,685 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings 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 valued at $2,947,891,000 after purchasing an additional 373,012 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,858,543,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 10,688,232 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,746,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,558,749 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $479.76 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $380.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $154.46 and a 52-week high of $739.67. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $556.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $455.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 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. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.28%.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure is supporting a new growth cycle. Chipmakers are increasing spending on advanced DRAM, high-bandwidth memory, leading-edge logic and advanced packaging—all areas that benefit Applied Materials’ semiconductor equipment business. The company’s latest quarter showed revenue growth of 24.8% year over year, with earnings and revenue exceeding analyst expectations. Applied Materials Enters a New AI-Driven Growth Cycle
• Positive Sentiment: Services and parts demand remain resilient. Applied Materials’ Applied Global Services (AGS) division reportedly reached record revenue and expanded margins, helped by subscription services, parts demand and higher semiconductor-fab utilization. This recurring revenue can provide stability across equipment cycles. AMAT’s AGS Business Gains Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see potential upside after the recent selloff. Consensus price targets imply roughly 35% upside, while another report cited an average target near $641. However, these targets depend on continued earnings-estimate improvements and sustained AI spending. Analyst Upside Potential for AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho remains constructive but lowered its target. The firm reduced its price target from $650 to $590 while maintaining an “outperform” rating, reflecting a more cautious near-term outlook despite expected upside. Mizuho AMAT Price Target Update
• Negative Sentiment: China exposure is the main overhang. Tighter export controls and the emergence of Chinese domestic immersion DUV lithography systems are raising concerns about Applied Materials’ competitiveness and future China sales. Reports caution that not all of the company’s approximately $2.087 billion in quarterly China revenue is immediately threatened, but investors are still pricing in greater regulatory and competitive risk. Applied Materials’ China Problem Is Getting Worse

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 146,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 134,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This trade represents a 6.02% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 276,692 shares of company stock valued at $169,030,834 over the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 14th. HSBC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $683.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, July 27th. William Blair began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $657.76.

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.