Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Bought by Prospera Financial Services Inc

Key Points

• Prospera Financial Services increased its stake in Applied Materials by 8% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 53,189 shares valued at about $13.7 million.
• Applied Materials reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.86 versus estimates of $2.68 and revenue of $7.91 billion, up 11.4% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 per share from $0.46, while analysts remain broadly bullish with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $465.14.

Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 8.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 53,189 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,935 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $13,672,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $19,731,523,000 after buying an additional 330,197 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 225.4% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $3,046,057,000 after buying an additional 10,305,182 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after buying an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 42.6% in the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 10,978,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,247,838,000 after buying an additional 3,280,730 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 19.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,552,132 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,160,443,000 after buying an additional 1,681,911 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of AMAT opened at $432.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $153.47 and a 12-month high of $448.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $387.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $326.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $342.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.66.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials's quarterly revenue 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 issued a $0.53 dividend. 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 payout ratio is currently 19.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 16th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $480.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners started coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, May 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $500.00 target price for the company. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials 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 Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the 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 transaction, the director owned 26,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 7,003 shares of company stock valued at $2,678,139 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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