UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC Decreases Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management reduced its holdings in Applied Materials by 85.9% during Q1, selling over 7.5 million shares, leaving them with approximately 1.23 million shares valued at $178.5 million.
• Several institutional investors significantly increased their stakes in Applied Materials, with Pacer Advisors boosting its holdings by 2,401% and GAMMA Investing by 18,402% during the same quarter.
• Analyst ratings for Applied Materials show a consensus of "Moderate Buy", with a price target averaging $193.88 following various ratings upgrades and downgrades from prominent financial institutions.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 85.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,230,257 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 7,513,638 shares during the quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned 0.15% of Applied Materials worth $178,535,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Old Port Advisors lifted its position in Applied Materials by 2.5% in the first quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 2,730 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $396,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.7% in the first quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,506 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 2,540 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $369,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 1,047 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Hardy Reed LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 7,324 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,063,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total transaction of $100,373.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on AMAT. Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective (down previously from $190.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Barclays raised their price target on Applied Materials from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Applied Materials from $169.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $192.92.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.4%

NASDAQ AMAT traded down $2.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $167.80. 5,167,090 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,142,924. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $215.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The firm has a market cap of $133.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.77. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $177.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $164.72.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.21 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is 21.93%.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.