Grandfield & Dodd LLC Has $55.18 Million Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Grandfield & Dodd LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 17,397 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up approximately 3.1% of Grandfield & Dodd LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Grandfield & Dodd LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $55,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.5% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,548 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 34.2% during the 3rd quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. now owns 1,906 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 93,402 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,123,000 after acquiring an additional 3,230 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 11,625 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,380,000 after acquiring an additional 1,223 shares during the period. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 325.0% during the 3rd quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 204 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, January 12th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $286.89.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,127,653.89. This trade represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 8,609 shares of company stock worth $2,044,898. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst target increases from major firms signal upside expectations — Needham raised its target to $390 and KeyBanc raised its target to $380, citing AMAT’s positioning for memory/AI-related capacity growth and vertical scaling potential. Needham Increases AMAT Target to $390 KeyBanc Raises AMAT Target to $380
• Positive Sentiment: Display business rebound: Q4 display revenues rose ~68% driven by advanced systems, improved pricing and stronger OLED demand — a sign AMAT’s display segment may reaccelerate revenue and margins if demand for OLED and AR/VR tooling continues. Can AMAT Lead the Display Market With Advanced OLED and AR/VR Push?
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings date set — AMAT will report fiscal Q1 2026 results and host its earnings call on Feb. 12, 2026; that event is a near-term catalyst where management guidance and commentary on China exposure, memory demand and pricing will matter most. Applied Materials to Report Fiscal First Quarter 2026 Results on Feb. 12, 2026 Q1 2026 Earnings Call Details
• Neutral Sentiment: Relative sector performance pieces highlight AMAT vs. peers (ASML, Lam) and frame expectations — useful context for investors assessing valuation and relative upside but not an immediate driver. Are Computer and Technology Stocks Lagging Applied Materials (AMAT) This Year?
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue and China-market headwinds remain a drag — AMAT reported a ~3.5% revenue decline YoY in the last quarter and analysts point to China restrictions as a continuing risk to near-term top-line growth. That dynamic helps explain why some analysts still caution on downside despite upgrades. Which Semiconductor Equipment Stock Has More Upside in 2026?
• Negative Sentiment: Negative/sell viewpoints and insider selling are being highlighted by some outlets — a Yahoo piece recommends selling AMAT in favor of alternatives, and recent insider sales are noted in market summaries, both of which can add near-term selling pressure. 1 Reason to Sell AMAT and 1 Stock to Buy Instead Quiver Quant: Insider Activity & Institutional Moves (AMAT)

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $318.79 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $333.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The company has a market cap of $252.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.73, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.67. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $268.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $221.47.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.380 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 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, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.20%.

About Applied Materials

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.