Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Position Increased by Conning Inc.

Conning Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,060 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,877 shares during the period. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,701,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.6% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 80,212,518 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $57,993,650,000 after buying an additional 1,237,685 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 85.4% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 69,525,842 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $50,267,184,000 after buying an additional 32,018,892 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 19.0% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 7,808,207 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,645,344,000 after buying an additional 1,246,876 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 16.2% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,713,599 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,576,932,000 after buying an additional 1,073,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,252,863,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $416.00 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $203.40 and a 52 week high of $739.67. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $461.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $442.61. The company has a market cap of $330.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.86, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total transaction of $465,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,877,960. This represents a 3.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 725 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.56, for a total value of $394,806.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,732,245.36. The trade was a 18.56% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 9,225 shares of company stock worth $4,454,181 over the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Memory shortage supports equipment demand. SK Hynix’s forecast that a memory shortage could persist through 2030 suggests years of additional fab construction and equipment purchases. Applied Materials rose alongside Lam Research and KLA as investors anticipated increased orders from memory manufacturers. Chip Equipment Stocks Rally as SK Hynix Signals Memory Shortage Into 2030
• Positive Sentiment: Expanded BE Semiconductor stake strengthens the AI-packaging strategy. Applied Materials plans to increase its ownership of Dutch equipment maker BE Semiconductor Industries to approximately 20% from 9%, deepening cooperation in hybrid bonding and advanced interconnect technologies used in AI and high-performance-computing chips. Shares in BE Semiconductor jump after Applied Materials raises stake to 20%
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and industry forecasts remain constructive. Bernstein issued a Buy rating, while analysts expect strong double-digit earnings growth ahead of the company’s fourth-quarter report. A new industry report also projects substantial expansion in epitaxial wafer and chip technology, where Applied Materials is a major participant. Applied Materials receives a Buy from Bernstein
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate-governance attention is unlikely to materially affect near-term fundamentals. Applied Materials joined other large companies objecting to tokenized versions of their shares offered through OKX and Intercontinental Exchange under an SEC innovation framework.
• Negative Sentiment: Risks remain from China exposure, supply bottlenecks and valuation. Analysts caution that export restrictions and dependence on constrained semiconductor supply chains could limit the rally. AMAT’s recent decline and valuation near 36 times earnings also leave the stock sensitive to any slowdown in AI or memory spending.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on AMAT shares. HSBC reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $683.00 to $641.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Zacks Research lowered Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Bank of America cut their price target on Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 14th. New Street Research decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $580.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target (up from $500.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 14th. Thirty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $632.70.

About Applied Materials

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.