Signal Advisors Wealth LLC Acquires 5,444 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Signal Advisors Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 241.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,702 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,444 shares during the period. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,632,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,731,523,000 after acquiring an additional 330,197 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Applied Materials by 119.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Applied Materials by 40.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,470,835 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,947,891,000 after purchasing an additional 373,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $2,858,543,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.7%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $640.18 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $455.89 and a 200-day moving average of $368.31. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $154.46 and a 52-week high of $641.18. The stock has a market cap of $508.28 billion, a PE ratio of 60.11, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,695,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,006,503,625. This represents a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This trade represents a 6.02% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AMAT. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $465.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Argus increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Monday, May 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective for the company. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $495.45.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Citi raised its price target on Applied Materials to $710 from $550 and kept a Buy rating, signaling stronger confidence in the semiconductor equipment maker’s outlook. A Growing Supply Gap Has Analysts Eyeing Applied Materials (AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: Reuters reported that Applied Materials signed a long-term deal with EssilorLuxottica to develop augmented-reality display technology and AI glasses, expanding its opportunity in emerging wearable and AI-related markets. Applied Materials (AMAT) and EssilorLuxottica Sign Long-Term Deal, Reuters Reports
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary says AI demand may help justify AMAT’s premium valuation, with investors focusing on the company’s role in semiconductor and AI infrastructure spending. Applied Materials Is Now More Expensive Than Its Dot-Com Era Peak. AI Demand Justifies the AMAT Stock Valuation.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares, a routine filing that may draw attention but does not necessarily indicate a change in the company’s fundamentals. SEC Form 4 filing
• Negative Sentiment: Some articles highlighted concerns that AMAT’s valuation is becoming stretched, which could limit near-term upside if growth expectations cool. Applied Materials Stock Looks Pricey—Can AI Demand Justify the Rally?

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.