OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Increases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 13.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,819 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,822 shares during the quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $59,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Harborfront Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,184,361.88. This trade represents a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 276,692 shares of company stock valued at $169,030,834. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reportedly named Applied Materials a “top pick,” citing the company’s exposure to the continued buildout of AI infrastructure and chip-manufacturing capacity. Applied Materials Stock Is Named a Top Pick at Goldman Sachs
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see significant upside after the stock’s decline from its high, with AI-driven semiconductor investment and record quarterly revenue supporting bullish price targets. One report cited an average target near $641, implying roughly 32% potential appreciation from recent levels. Wall Street Sees Rally Despite Decline From Peak
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is viewed as a key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending because its equipment and engineering solutions are essential to advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Why Investors Should Buy the Dip in AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its Applied Materials price target from $650 to $590 but retained an “outperform” rating. The reduced target reflects more cautious expectations, while the rating still indicates confidence in the company’s longer-term prospects. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: The reported August short-interest figures show zero shares and a mathematically invalid change, making the data unreliable and unlikely to provide a meaningful trading signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks broadly declined as investors reduced risk ahead of NVIDIA’s results, weighing on Applied Materials alongside other chipmakers. Semiconductor Stocks Slide Ahead of NVIDIA Earnings

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.9%

Applied Materials stock opened at $480.04 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.42. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $154.46 and a one year high of $739.67. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $558.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $454.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $380.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.61.

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 the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AMAT. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $740.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $675.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 14th. William Blair initiated coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $657.76.

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.