Commerce Bank Raises Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Commerce Bank lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.0% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 64,337 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,241 shares during the period. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $46,516,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.1% in the 2nd 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 position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.1% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.9% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reportedly named Applied Materials a “top pick,” citing the company’s exposure to the continued buildout of AI infrastructure and chip-manufacturing capacity. Applied Materials Stock Is Named a Top Pick at Goldman Sachs
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see significant upside after the stock’s decline from its high, with AI-driven semiconductor investment and record quarterly revenue supporting bullish price targets. One report cited an average target near $641, implying roughly 32% potential appreciation from recent levels. Wall Street Sees Rally Despite Decline From Peak
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is viewed as a key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending because its equipment and engineering solutions are essential to advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Why Investors Should Buy the Dip in AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its Applied Materials price target from $650 to $590 but retained an “outperform” rating. The reduced target reflects more cautious expectations, while the rating still indicates confidence in the company’s longer-term prospects. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: The reported August short-interest figures show zero shares and a mathematically invalid change, making the data unreliable and unlikely to provide a meaningful trading signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks broadly declined as investors reduced risk ahead of NVIDIA’s results, weighing on Applied Materials alongside other chipmakers. Semiconductor Stocks Slide Ahead of NVIDIA Earnings

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, 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. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total transaction of $14,398,392.09. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares in the company, valued at $87,184,361.88. The trade was a 14.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 276,692 shares of company stock valued at $169,030,834 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and issued a $575.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Craig Hallum raised their price target on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $657.76.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $480.04 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $380.96 billion, a PE ratio of 41.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.42. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $154.46 and a 52-week high of $739.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $558.87 and a 200 day moving average of $454.37.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The business 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.28%.

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.