Savant Capital LLC Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Savant Capital LLC lessened its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,663 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,091 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,053,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 26.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 30.1% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,747,000 after purchasing an additional 3,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 59.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $77,383,000 after purchasing an additional 157,426 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $450.06 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $357.33 billion, a PE ratio of 42.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $397.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $333.49. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $153.47 and a 1-year high of $462.40.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its 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. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. HSBC assumed coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $517.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $530.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 15th. KGI Securities raised Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. B. Riley Financial upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total value of $116,370.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,280 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,461.60. This represents a 5.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,128 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $507,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,944,800. This trade represents a 4.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed its Overweight rating on Applied Materials and raised its price target to $575, reinforcing bullish analyst sentiment and pointing to more upside potential. Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Receives Overweight Rating from Cantor Fitzgerald
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights AMAT’s blowout quarterly results, higher outlook, and new AI chip equipment partnerships with companies like Broadcom and SCREEN, all of which support expectations for continued demand in semiconductor manufacturing equipment. Assessing Applied Materials (AMAT) Valuation After Earnings Beat And New AI Chip Equipment Partnerships
• Positive Sentiment: CEO Gary Dickerson said the semiconductor industry is in its strongest period ever, with AI driving unprecedented computing demand, which adds to the long-term growth narrative for Applied Materials. This is the greatest time ever for semiconductors, says CEO of key equipment supplier
• Positive Sentiment: AMAT continues to attract bullish commentary from analysts and market commentators as a leading AI semiconductor equipment play, helping sustain momentum in the shares. KLA vs. Applied Materials: Which Chip Equipment Stock Wins Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also presented at Bernstein’s Strategic Decisions Conference, which kept investors focused on management’s outlook but did not add a major new catalyst. Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) Presents at Bernstein 42nd Annual Strategic Decisions Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider selling by Director Judy Bruner may create a modest headwind, though the sale was small relative to her remaining stake and does not appear to change the broader bullish thesis. Applied Materials director Judy Bruner stock sale

Applied Materials Company 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.