Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Purchased by Capital Investment Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 8.2% to 51,661 shares (about $13.28M), while other institutions—most notably Global X Japan—made sizable additions (Global X Japan up 254% to 74,269 shares).
• Fundamentals and shareholder returns: Applied Materials beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates ($2.38 EPS on $7.01B revenue), set Q2 2026 guidance of $2.44–2.84 EPS, and announced a ~15% dividend increase to $0.53 quarterly.
• Insider activity: Company insiders sold 12,003 shares worth about $4.48M last quarter (including CFO Brice Hill's 5,000-share sale), leaving insiders with roughly 0.30% ownership.

Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 8.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 51,661 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,903 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $13,276,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dakota Wealth Management increased its stake in Applied Materials by 19.0% in the fourth quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 20,073 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $5,159,000 after purchasing an additional 3,208 shares during the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 254.3% in the 4th quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 74,269 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $19,086,000 after buying an additional 53,305 shares during the last quarter. Kelly Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $563,000. Baker Chad R grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 76.6% in the 4th quarter. Baker Chad R now owns 16,530 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $4,297,000 after buying an additional 7,170 shares during the period. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $317,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Record DRAM tools, new 2nm GAA tool announcements, a 15% dividend increase and steps to strengthen Asian logistics support renewed optimism about AMAT’s AI/DRAM exposure and cash returns to shareholders. Applied Materials Is Up After Record DRAM Tools, Dividend Hike And AI Supply-Chain Push
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst research (Erste Group) is modeling materially higher EPS for FY2026–FY2027 versus consensus (Erste’s FY2027 $13.96 estimate vs. current consensus ~ $9.38), signaling some brokers expect stronger multi-year profitability. Erste Group EPS Estimates for AMAT
• Positive Sentiment: Research notes point to growing end markets—high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and advanced packaging for AI chips—that could accelerate AMAT revenue beyond cyclicality in legacy fabs. Can HBM and Packaging Demand Accelerate AMAT's Revenue Growth?
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and positioning pieces comparing ASML and Applied highlight both stocks as strong buys but emphasize different moats; ASML retains a premium for EUV dominance while AMAT is seen as cheaper exposure to broad equipment demand. ASML vs. Applied Materials: Which Chip Equipment Stock Offers Better Value in 2026?
• Neutral Sentiment: A MarketBeat piece flags that tech earnings growth hasn’t fully translated into ETF/stock price gains, suggesting broader market flow dynamics (not company fundamentals) may be capping AMAT’s rally. As Tech Earnings Grow, This ETF Still Hasn't Caught Up (AMAT)
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst and media comparisons are elevating ACM Research (ACMR) as a better pure-play WFE/AI equipment buy, which can divert investor dollars away from AMAT in the near term. AMAT vs. ACMR: Which WFE Stock is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Several articles spotlight ACMR’s momentum and niche wins in wafer-cleaning and AI-driven segments, amplifying competitive fear and rotation risk for AMAT. This AI Semi Equipment Maker Has Been Quietly Chewing Up the Competition
• Negative Sentiment: Broad-sector weakness hit semiconductor-equipment names in a recent selloff (Teradyne, Intel, KLA, Semtech cited alongside AMAT), pressuring the stock independent of AMAT-specific fundamentals. Teradyne, Applied Materials, Intel, KLA and Semtech Shares Plummet

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $337.17 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $395.95. The company has a 50 day moving average of $345.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $275.21. The company has a market cap of $267.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.65.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is 18.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $470.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $363.46.

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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