Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Has $957.94 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA reduced its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,802,843 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 43,957 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for 1.0% of Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $957,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $19,731,523,000 after buying an additional 330,197 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Applied Materials by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,470,835 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,947,891,000 after acquiring an additional 373,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,858,543,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials introduced new systems for DRAM and advanced packaging, expanding its role in AI chip manufacturing and potentially boosting future demand. Applied Materials Introduces New Systems to Accelerate DRAM and Advanced Packaging for AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts said AMAT’s event highlighted strong opportunities in DRAM and advanced packaging, reinforcing the company’s AI-driven growth narrative. Applied Materials’ event focuses on DRAM, and advanced packaging: analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary remains constructive, with analysts still confident in Applied Materials’ strong competitive position. AMAT stock gets thumbs up from Wall Street – analysts remain confident about Applied Materials’ strong market position
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage suggests the stock may be looking expensive after its recent rally, which could limit near-term upside even if the long-term AI story stays intact. Applied Materials stock looks pricey—can AI demand justify the rally?
• Neutral Sentiment: One analysis noted that Applied Materials’ aggressive investment strategy may pressure cash flow in the near term, even though it supports longer-term growth. Can AMAT’s Investment Strategy Lift Future Cash Flow Growth?

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on Applied Materials from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Zacks Research lowered Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $518.19.

Applied Materials Trading Down 6.2%

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $626.84 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $497.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $669.22. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $473.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $377.36.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The company’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total transaction of $5,092,941.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 40,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,326,071.43. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Company 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.