Two Sigma Securities LLC Buys New Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Two Sigma Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 28,021 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $20,259,000. Applied Materials accounts for about 1.8% of Two Sigma Securities LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Harborfront Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $461.67 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $550.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $457.65. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.46 and a 12 month high of $739.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $366.38 billion, a PE ratio of 39.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. Analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.28%.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Semiconductor and AI demand remains strong: Recent coverage highlights Applied Materials’ $9.12 billion third-quarter revenue, up 25% year over year, and non-GAAP EPS of $3.50, up 41%. Management cited record demand visibility from AI infrastructure, more than 10 new fab projects during the quarter and fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $10.25 billion. The company is also continuing share repurchases and investing $5 billion in its EPIC Center to accelerate semiconductor innovation. The AI Buildout Is Turning Applied Materials Into A Profit Machine
• Positive Sentiment: New board member adds semiconductor expertise: AMAT appointed Akash Palkhiwala, Qualcomm’s CFO and COO, to its board and Audit Committee. His finance, operations and industry experience could strengthen oversight as Applied Materials pursues growth tied to advanced logic, memory and AI chip production. Applied Materials Appoints Akash Palkhiwala to Board of Directors
• Neutral Sentiment: Options market signals elevated uncertainty: A new analysis says options pricing for roughly one year ahead implies a particularly wide potential trading range, extending materially below and above the current level. That suggests investors should expect significant volatility rather than providing a clear directional signal. How Far Applied Materials Stock Can Move In A Year
• Negative Sentiment: CFO share sale may weigh modestly on sentiment: CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 AMAT shares for approximately $3.6 million, reducing his direct holdings by 5.51%. The sale does not alter the company’s operating outlook, but insider selling can create a limited short-term sentiment overhang. SEC Insider Transaction Filing

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total value of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 284,192 shares of company stock worth $172,625,209. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on AMAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $605.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 14th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. UBS Group set a $675.00 target price on Applied Materials and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Applied Materials from $675.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $657.76.

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.