Gunderson Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Gunderson Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 23,098 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,895,000. Applied Materials makes up about 3.3% of Gunderson Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 52.4% during the 4th quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on AMAT. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $540.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 23rd. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Argus lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $518.19.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials introduced new systems for DRAM and advanced packaging, expanding its role in AI chip manufacturing and potentially boosting future demand. Applied Materials Introduces New Systems to Accelerate DRAM and Advanced Packaging for AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts said AMAT’s event highlighted strong opportunities in DRAM and advanced packaging, reinforcing the company’s AI-driven growth narrative. Applied Materials’ event focuses on DRAM, and advanced packaging: analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary remains constructive, with analysts still confident in Applied Materials’ strong competitive position. AMAT stock gets thumbs up from Wall Street – analysts remain confident about Applied Materials’ strong market position
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage suggests the stock may be looking expensive after its recent rally, which could limit near-term upside even if the long-term AI story stays intact. Applied Materials stock looks pricey—can AI demand justify the rally?
• Neutral Sentiment: One analysis noted that Applied Materials’ aggressive investment strategy may pressure cash flow in the near term, even though it supports longer-term growth. Can AMAT’s Investment Strategy Lift Future Cash Flow Growth?

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total transaction of $6,335,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 346,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $219,608,106.26. This represents a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 6.2%

AMAT stock opened at $626.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $497.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.67. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $473.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $377.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $154.46 and a 52 week high of $669.22.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 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, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

Applied Materials Profile

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.