Metis Global Partners LLC Sells 3,005 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Metis Global Partners LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 33,545 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,005 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $8,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,731,523,000 after purchasing an additional 330,197 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during the 4th 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 during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,751 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $2,858,543,000. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 42.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 10,978,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,247,838,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,730 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials received a new Street-high price target from a top Wall Street analyst, reinforcing the view that the stock can still move higher. Applied Materials Stock (AMAT) Scores a New Street-High Price Target from a Top Wall Street Analyst
• Positive Sentiment: The company expanded its Singapore manufacturing and R&D footprint with a $500 million Tampines Campus to support rising AI-chip demand, which highlights long-term growth opportunities in semiconductor equipment. Applied Materials Expands Singapore Manufacturing to Support AI Chip Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Cantor also raised price targets across chip-equipment peers, including Applied Materials, adding to the bullish analyst backdrop for the group. KLA Corp., Lam Research, Applied Materials, ASML in focus as Cantor ups price targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials announced a quarterly cash dividend of $0.53 per share, signaling strong capital returns, though the move is usually more supportive than immediately price-driving. Applied Materials Announces Cash Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage noted the stock slipping in pre-market trading despite the expansion news, suggesting investors are weighing the capital spending against the long-term AI demand story. AMAT Stock Falls despite Capacity Expansion as AI Fuels Demand for Chipmaking Gears

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,128 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $507,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 26,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,944,800. This represents a 4.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total value of $116,370.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,461.60. The trade was a 5.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 53,896 shares of company stock valued at $27,135,121 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $497.01 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $418.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $348.79. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $154.46 and a twelve month high of $534.44. The stock has a market cap of $394.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.67, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.39 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AMAT. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Applied Materials from $435.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Argus raised their price target on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $502.00 price target (up from $454.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $480.13.

About Applied Materials

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.