Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Stock Holdings Reduced by Leelyn Smith LLC

Leelyn Smith LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 25,307 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,807 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises about 1.4% of Leelyn Smith LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Leelyn Smith LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $12,941,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 80,212,518 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $57,993,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,237,685 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Applied Materials by 85.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 69,525,842 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $50,267,184,000 after purchasing an additional 32,018,892 shares during the period. Amundi raised its position in Applied Materials by 19.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 7,808,207 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,645,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246,876 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Applied Materials by 16.2% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,713,599 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,576,932,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,879 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the second quarter worth $5,252,863,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $332.71 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $264.04 billion, a PE ratio of 28.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $203.40 and a 12-month high of $739.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $444.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $444.66.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on AMAT. B. Riley Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $700.00 price target (down from $790.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Berenberg Bank lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $575.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $710.00 target price (up from $550.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. William Blair began coverage on Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $740.00 to $580.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 16th. Thirty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $632.01.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: A rally in chip-equipment shares is lifting AMAT ahead of its fiscal fourth-quarter results, scheduled for November 12. The sector move followed Lam Research’s announcement of a $25 billion share buyback. Article: Applied Materials Stocks Rise as Chip Equipment Rallies Ahead of Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: AI-related equipment demand and growth in advanced packaging are cited as longer-term supports for Applied Materials, despite the recent pullback in chip stocks. Article: AMAT Shares Plunge 30% in a Month: Should You Buy, Sell or Hold?
• Neutral Sentiment: The upcoming results are a key near-term catalyst: investors will assess whether demand and equipment-spending expectations hold up in a more cautious investment environment. Article: Applied Materials Stocks Fall Before a Revenue Test
• Negative Sentiment: The rebound follows a sharp chip-stock sell-off, with investors worried that data-center spending could slow; weak Qualcomm guidance added to sector concerns. AMAT also recently faced pressure after an analyst downgrade. Article: Chip Stock Rout Deepens Article: Applied Materials Stock Falls After Analyst Downgrade

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total transaction of $465,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,877,960. This represents a 3.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total value of $394,806.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,732,245.36. This represents a 18.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 9,225 shares of company stock valued at $4,454,181 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc develops and supplies equipment, software and services used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its technologies help customers build and process materials at the microscopic scale required for chips and other electronic products.

The company’s offerings include systems for depositing, removing and modifying materials, as well as inspection, measurement and process-control tools. It also provides equipment and services for advanced semiconductor packaging and supports customers with maintenance, upgrades and manufacturing software.

Founded in 1967 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Applied Materials serves semiconductor and display manufacturers around the world.