Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS Purchases New Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,781,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TL Private Wealth acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $320,000. Norway Savings Bank purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $272,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $369,000. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 71.3% during the 2nd quarter. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,564 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,300,000 after acquiring an additional 1,900 shares during the period. Finally, Aurora Investment Managers LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $303,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped 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. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $525.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $502.00 to $647.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $603.23.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly optimistic about AMAT, with consensus price targets implying additional upside. Citi reportedly identified Applied Materials as a top semiconductor pick following the sector’s selloff, while other coverage highlights the company’s strong position in deposition, etch, inspection and wafer-processing equipment. Are Wall Street Analysts Predicting Applied Materials Stock Will Climb or Sink?
• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure spending is supporting the outlook for semiconductor manufacturing equipment. A potential Tesla-SpaceX “Terafab” buildout, along with rising demand for AI chips, advanced packaging and memory, could create additional opportunities for Applied Materials. Tesla-SpaceX Terafab Bet
• Positive Sentiment: Expectations for the August 13 report are favorable: analysts anticipate earnings growth and a potential beat. Applied Materials’ previous quarter exceeded consensus on both earnings and revenue, with revenue up 11.4% year over year, providing a constructive comparison for the upcoming release. Applied Materials Reports Next Week
• Neutral Sentiment: Options markets are pricing a potentially large earnings move, reportedly around 11%. That highlights significant event risk: a strong report and outlook could extend the rally, but merely meeting high expectations may not be enough. Options Market and AMAT’s Earnings Move
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank lowered its rating on AMAT to Hold. The downgrade adds pressure after the stock’s strong rebound and reinforces concerns that substantial AI optimism is already reflected in the valuation. Applied Materials Rating Lowered to Hold
• Negative Sentiment: Investor Michael Burry’s disclosed short positions in AI-linked semiconductor names, including Applied Materials, have revived concerns about an AI-stock reversal and heightened volatility. As Burry Targets AI Chip Names

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 278,088 shares of company stock valued at $169,654,805. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.2%

AMAT opened at $539.14 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market cap of $428.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.62, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $154.46 and a 52 week high of $739.67. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $559.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $437.71.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

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.