South Dakota Investment Council Has $27.70 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

South Dakota Investment Council reduced its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 12.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,033 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 12,016 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for approximately 0.5% of South Dakota Investment Council’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $27,696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 26.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 30.1% in the second 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 during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 59.3% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $77,383,000 after purchasing an additional 157,426 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Down 8.4%

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $436.45 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $154.46 and a one year high of $739.67. The company has a market cap of $346.52 billion, a PE ratio of 40.98, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $547.86 and a 200-day moving average of $428.02.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business 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 $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials has benefited from AI-driven increases in wafer-fabrication spending, supporting demand for its semiconductor manufacturing equipment. A recent fund review cited the company as a beneficiary of rising AI-related capital expenditures. Applied Materials Rose on AI-Driven Wafer Fabrication Spending
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention around AMAT has increased, according to Zacks, but the article provides no new company-specific earnings, guidance or fundamental catalyst. The heightened search interest may reflect volatility and investor efforts to assess the stock’s outlook. Investors Heavily Search Applied Materials
• Negative Sentiment: AMAT is being pulled down with the broader semiconductor group as investors question the sustainability and financing of AI infrastructure spending. Rising competition from China is adding to pressure on chip-equipment shares. Semiconductor Stocks Trade Down
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that China is mass-producing domestic immersion DUV lithography equipment raise a longer-term competitive risk for Applied Materials. Local alternatives could reduce Western suppliers’ access to Chinese fabs, while export controls further complicate the company’s ability to convert AI demand into orders. China’s Domestic Immersion DUV Push
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market selling intensified amid a sharp oil-price increase tied to renewed U.S.-Iran tensions and uncertainty ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision. Falling major indexes reduced risk appetite for high-beta technology and semiconductor stocks such as AMAT. Oil Spikes as Nasdaq 100 Sinks

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AMAT. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Applied Materials from $390.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $740.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $525.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $599.19.

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.