Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd Buys 1,984 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 76.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,584 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,984 shares during the period. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,178,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Godsey & Gibb Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,298 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Family Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,227 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 4,582 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,178,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Traveka Wealth LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 48.7% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen raised their target price on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $502.00 target price (up from $454.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 15th. DZ Bank raised Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. Argus boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $465.14.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials’ new collaboration with Broadcom boosts its AI packaging story and highlights its importance in next-generation semiconductor manufacturing. Why Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Is Up Today
• Positive Sentiment: Investor sentiment remains constructive, with traders noting strong semiconductor sector momentum, improving technicals, and continued AI infrastructure demand supporting AMAT. Applied Materials Stock (AMAT) Opinions on Semiconductor Gains
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street still appears bullish on AMAT, with multiple recent buy/overweight ratings and price targets clustered well above current levels, reinforcing the stock’s longer-term upside case.
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader coverage continues to frame Applied Materials as a key beneficiary of AI and advanced packaging trends, but some of the related articles are commentary rather than new company-specific developments. Applied Materials (AMAT): “The Arms Dealer of the Semiconductor Revolution”
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent articles also highlighted the stock’s strong multi-year performance and its role among semiconductor equipment peers, which may support investor attention but do not add a major new catalyst. Here’s How Much You’d Have If You Invested $1000 in Applied Materials a Decade Ago
• Negative Sentiment: One potential overhang is continued insider selling over the past six months, which can sometimes weigh on sentiment even when fundamentals remain strong.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total value of $1,496,392.38. Following the transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,003 shares of company stock worth $2,678,139. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $432.16 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $153.47 and a 12 month high of $448.45. 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 business’s 50 day simple moving average is $387.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $326.06. The company has a market cap of $342.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.58, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.66.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The business had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.91%.

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.