Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Stake Trimmed by Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 43,730 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,170 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $22,363,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 4.3% in the second quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the second quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC now owns 961 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $695,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $725,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.9% during the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Applied Materials by 13.0% in the second quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Expanded Besi investment strengthens advanced-packaging strategy. Applied Materials agreed to increase its stake in Besi to approximately 20% through an accelerated share purchase. The investment gives AMAT deeper exposure to semiconductor assembly and advanced-packaging equipment, areas expected to benefit from increasingly complex chips and AI infrastructure. Applied Materials to Increase its Strategic Investment in BE Semiconductor Industries
• Positive Sentiment: Margin expansion remains a key bullish theme. Coverage highlighted investor focus on Applied Materials’ ambition to achieve roughly 40% margins. Progress toward that goal could support earnings growth and reinforce the company’s premium valuation. Applied Materials Stocks Gain With 40% Margin Ambition in Focus
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst earnings estimates were raised. Erste Group Bank analysts increased their earnings expectations for AMAT, providing an additional positive signal for the semiconductor-equipment maker’s profit outlook. Erste Group Bank Analysts Raise Earnings Estimates for AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Market coverage noted that Applied Materials outperformed the broader market during the latest session, but the report offered limited new fundamental information. Applied Materials Surpasses Market Returns
• Negative Sentiment: AI-spending and valuation risks remain. Bearish commentary argued that cooling enthusiasm toward AI and a potential slowdown in semiconductor capital expenditures could pressure equipment demand, although AMAT’s durable long-term growth prospects may limit the downside. Applied Materials’ Meltdown Is a Gift as Durable Capex Meets Cooling AI Sentiments

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several research reports. Craig Hallum boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research downgraded Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. HC Wainwright set a $850.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Thirty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $632.70.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total value of $394,806.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 3,181 shares in the company, valued at $1,732,245.36. This trade represents a 18.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total value of $465,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 25,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,877,960. The trade was a 3.77% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,225 shares of company stock worth $4,454,181. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.7%

Applied Materials stock opened at $387.59 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $203.40 and a 1-year high of $739.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $307.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.60. 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 50 day simple moving average of $468.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $440.96.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 return on equity of 38.02% and a net margin of 30.05%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc is a technology company that supplies equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its products help customers fabricate the integrated circuits and other components used in computers, mobile devices, data centers, automobiles and a range of connected technologies.

The company’s offerings include systems for materials engineering, wafer fabrication, inspection and process control, along with equipment and services designed to improve manufacturing productivity and yield.