Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Grows Position

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 11.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,103,271 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 219,045 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for 0.6% of Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.27% of Applied Materials worth $1,075,571,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harborfront Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Highland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Curry Webb Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $479.25, for a total value of $3,594,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 128,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,637,780.25. The trade was a 5.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total value of $394,806.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,732,245.36. The trade was a 18.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 9,225 shares of company stock worth $4,454,181 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials’ planned move to raise its Besi stake to 20% is strengthening its exposure to hybrid bonding, a packaging technology that could benefit from rising AI-chip complexity. TIKR describes a bullish long-term scenario, with a potential price target of approximately $806 versus a roughly $628 Wall Street target. Applied Materials hybrid bonding analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights a quarter with 51% growth and argues that AMAT trades at about 23 times forward earnings, a valuation that may look reasonable if AI-related semiconductor-equipment demand remains strong. The company also recently exceeded earnings and revenue estimates and issued fourth-quarter EPS guidance of $3.82–$4.22. Applied Materials growth and valuation analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: AMAT is attracting unusually high investor attention, but the Zacks reports primarily review the company’s prospects rather than identify a new fundamental catalyst. Zacks Applied Materials investor attention report
• Negative Sentiment: Compared with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, Applied Materials has shown a flatter revenue trajectory and less consistent quarter-over-quarter growth. That comparison may reinforce concerns that AMAT’s elevated valuation already discounts substantial AI-driven demand. Applied Materials versus Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Berenberg Bank upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $575.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $675.00 to $695.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Argus set a $600.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Thirty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $632.70.

Applied Materials Trading Down 7.5%

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $390.09 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $203.40 and a 1-year high of $739.67. The firm has a market cap of $309.58 billion, a PE ratio of 33.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a 50-day moving average of $457.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $443.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.79.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The business had revenue of $9.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.48 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.79 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Applied Materials Company Profile

Applied Materials, Inc is a technology company that supplies equipment, services and software used to manufacture semiconductors and advanced displays. Its products help customers fabricate the integrated circuits and other components used in computers, mobile devices, data centers, automobiles and a range of connected technologies.

The company’s offerings include systems for materials engineering, wafer fabrication, inspection and process control, along with equipment and services designed to improve manufacturing productivity and yield.