Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich

Key Points

• Munich Reinsurance Co trimmed its stake in Applied Materials by 75% in Q4, selling 27,439 shares and leaving 9,162 shares valued at about $2.38 million.
• Wall Street is largely bullish — multiple upgrades and higher targets (e.g., KeyCorp $450, Cantor Fitzgerald $470, UBS $430) give AMAT a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $368.29.
• Applied beat Q1 estimates (non-GAAP EPS $2.38 vs. $2.21), reported record DRAM revenue and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53, while insiders have sold roughly 12,003 shares (~$4.48M) in the past 90 days.

Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich trimmed its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 75.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 27,439 shares during the quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 26.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $590,000 after buying an additional 679 shares during the period. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth about $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 30.1% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,747,000 after buying an additional 3,469 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 59.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $77,383,000 after buying an additional 157,426 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Summit Insights upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group set a $430.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $368.29.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results and DRAM strength — Applied beat estimates (non-GAAP EPS $2.38 vs $2.21) and reported record DRAM revenue now ~34% of Semiconductor Systems revenue, supporting a stronger memory-driven growth outlook. Philippe Laffont's Coatue Is Betting Billions on These 3 AI Stocks. Here's Why Smart Money Sees AI Dominance
• Positive Sentiment: Tesla terafab participation — Applied joined Tesla’s Terafab project, a potential validation of AMAT’s equipment roadmap and a source of future equipment orders if Tesla scales fabs. Applied Materials Just Joined the Tesla Terafab Project. Does That Make AMAT Stock a Buy?
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile bullish endorsements — Jim Cramer publicly called AMAT “a great buy,” and buy-side interest (e.g., Coatue) draws retail and institutional attention that can support momentum. Jim Cramer on Applied Materials: “It’s Not a Good Buy, It’s a Great Buy”
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street and sector tailwinds — Analysts and industry write-ups expect double-digit EPS growth next quarter and highlight semiconductor/AI-driven demand (especially for memory/DRAM), which benefits AMAT’s equipment backlog and margin outlook. What to Expect From Applied Materials' Q2 2026 Earnings Report
• Positive Sentiment: Industry buy lists and thematic coverage — AMAT appears on semiconductor/AI-themed buy lists (Zacks, industry commentaries) as investors favor companies exposed to AI, ML and memory demand. 3 Stocks to Buy From the Prospering Semiconductor Industry
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings date set — Applied will report fiscal Q2 2026 results on May 14; the event is a clear near-term catalyst but outcome/tone will determine direction. Applied Materials to Report Fiscal Second Quarter 2026 Results on May 14, 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Speculative upside narratives — Coverage arguing AMAT could be a trillion-dollar company candidate is bullish headline-grabbing speculation but depends on sustained margin and end-market expansion. Applied Materials (AMAT): Analyzing the Next Stock to Breach the Trillion Dollar Barrier
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data anomaly — a report shows a “large increase” but lists zero shares and NaN changes; likely a data glitch rather than actionable short-squeeze signal. (source: short interest report)
• Neutral Sentiment: Misc. buy/sell write-ups — Multiple “is AMAT a buy?” pieces and commentaries summarize bull cases; they reinforce investor interest but add no new company-specific catalysts. Is Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) A Good Stock To Buy Now?

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total value of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $417.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $330.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.64. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.71 and a fifty-two week high of $420.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The business's 50-day moving average is $366.44 and its 200-day moving average is $301.68.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 EPS 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 issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. 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. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.70%.

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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