Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Stock: Philadelphia Trust Co. Decreases Stake

Philadelphia Trust Co. decreased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 13.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,010 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the quarter. Philadelphia Trust Co.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $10,233,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Harborfront Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Highland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Curry Webb Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Expanding high-bandwidth memory (HBM) capacity could drive demand for semiconductor manufacturing and advanced-packaging equipment, creating a potential growth opportunity for Applied Materials. The Next AI Chip Shortage May Be the Machines That Make HBM
• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley lowered its price target to $475 from $700 but maintained a Buy rating, leaving substantial implied upside from the cited share price. B. Riley Cut Its Applied Materials Target to $475. It Still Sees 28% Upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Options traders are anticipating a potentially large post-earnings move, signaling heightened volatility rather than a clear directional view. Investors will be watching results and the company’s outlook. Why Options Traders Expect a Major Post-Earnings Reaction
• Negative Sentiment: A technical analysis article says AMAT is nearing a “death cross” after a steep retreat from its high, which could signal further downside if the bearish pattern forms. Applied Materials Stock: Death Cross Pattern Nears Ahead of Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: ETFs sold about $200.2 million of Applied Materials shares on Friday, adding a short-term source of selling pressure. ETFs Are Net Sellers of Applied Materials

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $700.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $650.00 to $590.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. New Street Research lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $563.00 to $538.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 14th. Thirty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $625.76.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.5%

AMAT opened at $372.53 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $441.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $445.16. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $203.40 and a 52 week high of $739.67. The company has a market capitalization of $295.64 billion, a PE ratio of 32.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 38.02% and a net margin of 30.05%. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly 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. Analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid 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%.

Applied Materials Profile

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.