Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd. Purchases New Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Agur Provident & Training Funds Management initiated a 16,100-share Applied Materials position worth approximately $10.95 million, making AMAT its 13th-largest holding and 2.6% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 80.56% of the stock.
• Applied Materials reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with $3.50 in EPS and $9.12 billion in revenue, up 24.8% year over year. AI-related semiconductor equipment demand, advanced packaging and memory investment are supporting the outlook, though valuation and semiconductor-cycle risks remain concerns.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive view, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and $658.45 target price, while insiders sold 231,692 shares worth roughly $146.1 million in the latest quarter. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, implying a 0.5% yield.

Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd. bought a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 16,100 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $10,952,000. Applied Materials accounts for about 2.6% of Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 70,976.9% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 870,192,678 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $629,149,306,000 after buying an additional 868,968,380 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% during 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 acquiring an additional 17,829,377 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 617.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after acquiring an additional 7,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $5,252,863,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total value of $6,335,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 346,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,608,106.26. The trade was a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares in the company, valued at $87,184,361.88. This represents a 14.17% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 231,692 shares of company stock valued at $146,114,059. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI-driven equipment demand remains the main catalyst. Growth in advanced packaging, DRAM and high-bandwidth memory (HBM), along with accelerating global fab investment, is strengthening the outlook for Applied Materials’ equipment orders. AMAT Rides on AI-Led WFE Demand: Can it Sustain the Momentum?
• Positive Sentiment: Raised forecasts have driven a major valuation re-rating. Although trailing-twelve-month revenue growth was only 7.8%, management reportedly increased its forecast twice between February and August as semiconductor demand expectations improved. That forward-growth story helps explain the stock’s roughly 180% one-year return. Why Did Applied Materials Stock Nearly Triple On Single-Digit Trailing Revenue Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst expectations are improving. UBS projected strong potential appreciation for AMAT, while another analyst raised the fiscal 2027 EPS estimate, signaling continued confidence in earnings growth and semiconductor capital spending. UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Applied Materials FY2027 EPS Estimate for Applied Materials Boosted by Analyst
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation remains a key debate. Despite a recent pullback, AMAT has gained about 237% over five years, leaving investors questioning how much AI and semiconductor-cycle optimism is already reflected in the shares. Can Applied Materials Still Look Cheap After a 237% Run?
• Negative Sentiment: Industry-cycle risks have not disappeared. Optimism about a permanently stronger semiconductor cycle is tempered by potential memory-capacity imbalances, which could pressure chipmakers’ capital spending if supply expands faster than demand. SEMIs CEO Has Watched Four Decades of Chip Cycles

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $454.71 on Monday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $533.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $461.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.42. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $158.82 and a 1 year high of $739.67. The company has a market capitalization of $360.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.60.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $645.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 14th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $675.00 to $695.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $658.45.

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.

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