Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 2,152 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 38,011 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,152 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for about 0.8% of Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $19,438,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC now owns 961 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $695,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $725,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on AMAT. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $575.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $700.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 14th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. William Blair started coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Argus set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Thirty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $632.70.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Expanded Besi investment strengthens advanced-packaging strategy. Applied Materials agreed to increase its stake in Besi to approximately 20% through an accelerated share purchase. The investment gives AMAT deeper exposure to semiconductor assembly and advanced-packaging equipment, areas expected to benefit from increasingly complex chips and AI infrastructure. Applied Materials to Increase its Strategic Investment in BE Semiconductor Industries
• Positive Sentiment: Margin expansion remains a key bullish theme. Coverage highlighted investor focus on Applied Materials’ ambition to achieve roughly 40% margins. Progress toward that goal could support earnings growth and reinforce the company’s premium valuation. Applied Materials Stocks Gain With 40% Margin Ambition in Focus
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst earnings estimates were raised. Erste Group Bank analysts increased their earnings expectations for AMAT, providing an additional positive signal for the semiconductor-equipment maker’s profit outlook. Erste Group Bank Analysts Raise Earnings Estimates for AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Market coverage noted that Applied Materials outperformed the broader market during the latest session, but the report offered limited new fundamental information. Applied Materials Surpasses Market Returns
• Negative Sentiment: AI-spending and valuation risks remain. Bearish commentary argued that cooling enthusiasm toward AI and a potential slowdown in semiconductor capital expenditures could pressure equipment demand, although AMAT’s durable long-term growth prospects may limit the downside. Applied Materials’ Meltdown Is a Gift as Durable Capex Meets Cooling AI Sentiments

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of the business’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 of the company’s stock, valued at $11,877,960. The trade was a 3.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the business’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 value of $394,806.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,181 shares in the company, valued at $1,732,245.36. This trade represents a 18.56% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,225 shares of company stock worth $4,454,181. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.7%

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $387.59 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $203.40 and a 52 week high of $739.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $468.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $440.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $307.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.41, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.60.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Applied Materials Profile

Applied Materials, Inc is a technology company that supplies equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its products help customers fabricate the integrated circuits and other components used in computers, mobile devices, data centers, automobiles and a range of connected technologies.

The company’s offerings include systems for materials engineering, wafer fabrication, inspection and process control, along with equipment and services designed to improve manufacturing productivity and yield.