Norges Bank Takes Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 8,761,686 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,604,002,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Virtue Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 7.5% in the second quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 1,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $271,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 21,327 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,904,000 after purchasing an additional 2,267 shares during the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 16.0% in the 2nd quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 48,087 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,803,000 after purchasing an additional 6,635 shares during the period. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 6.1% in the second quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 2,953 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $564,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 12.5% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 532,194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $97,429,000 after buying an additional 59,334 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $290.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 14th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 14th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Summit Insights downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $228.04.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $249.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $199.14 billion, a PE ratio of 29.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $252.66. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $223.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $191.85.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.06. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.96% and a net margin of 23.88%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.32 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.20%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.