Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Bought by EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC

Key Points

• EverSource Wealth Advisors increased its stake in Applied Materials by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, holding 57,175 shares valued at about $14.7 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds now own roughly 80.56% of the stock.
• Several analysts turned more bullish on AMAT, with firms including RBC, Bank of America, JPMorgan, and Mizuho raising price targets. The stock currently carries a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $465.14.
• Applied Materials reported strong quarterly results, posting $2.86 EPS on $7.91 billion in revenue, both ahead of expectations, and it raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 per share from $0.46.

EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 57,175 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,426 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $14,694,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth 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. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Applied Materials by 147.2% during the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% 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 firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 7,003 shares of company stock valued at $2,678,139 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $465.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Seaport Research Partners assumed coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, May 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $500.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $410.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $465.14.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $432.16 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $387.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $326.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $342.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.66. 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $153.47 and a 52 week high of $448.45.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

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

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.

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