Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Bought by Patton Fund Management Inc.

Key Points

• Patton Fund Management boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 1,816.6%, buying an additional 26,377 shares to hold 27,829 shares worth about $7.15 million.
• Applied Materials beat Q results—EPS $2.38 vs. $2.21 expected and revenue $7.01B vs. $6.88B—and issued Q2 EPS guidance of 2.440–2.840, while analysts raised price targets and the consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" (avg. PT $368.29).
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 (annualized $2.12, ~0.5% yield) and insiders sold about 12,003 shares totaling roughly $4.48 million over the last quarter.

Patton Fund Management Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 1,816.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,829 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 26,377 shares during the quarter. Patton Fund Management Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,152,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AMAT. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.9%

Applied Materials stock opened at $395.72 on Tuesday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $353.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $290.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $132.80 and a 1-year high of $407.29. The stock has a market cap of $314.04 billion, a PE ratio of 40.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.64.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.38 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is 21.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,051,063.65. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays increased their target price on Applied Materials from $360.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $432.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. KeyCorp upped their price target on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $368.29.

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.

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