Aprio Wealth Management LLC Purchases 2,995 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials (AMAT) by 137.5%, purchasing 2,995 shares to own 5,173 shares worth about $1.33M per its latest Form 13F filing.
• Institutional investors own 80.56% of AMAT, while corporate insiders have been net sellers recently — insiders sold 12,003 shares (~$4.48M) over the last 90 days, including sales by a director and the CFO.
• Analysts are broadly bullish with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy (average target $368.29); Applied beat quarterly EPS estimates, provided Q2 EPS guidance of 2.44–2.84, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53.

Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 137.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,995 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,329,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Grandfield & Dodd LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 6.9% in the third quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $55,180,000 after acquiring an additional 17,397 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.9% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,101,772 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $635,057,000 after acquiring an additional 145,050 shares during the period. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 21.8% in the third quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 96,712 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $19,801,000 after acquiring an additional 17,288 shares during the period. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 82.2% in the third quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 26,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $5,512,000 after acquiring an additional 12,132 shares during the period. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,531,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Advantest joined Applied’s EPIC platform and opened an Innovation Center on Applied’s Silicon Valley R&D campus—this tightens front‑end process engineering with back‑end test capabilities, which could accelerate commercialization of complex AI and HPC chips and strengthen Applied’s competitive ecosystem over time. Is Advantest’s EPIC Tie-Up Reshaping the Long-Term Investment Case for Applied Materials (AMAT)?
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group upgraded AMAT from “hold” to “buy,” a near‑term bullish catalyst that can support sentiment and attract buyers at pullbacks. Erste Group upgrade (Finviz)
• Neutral Sentiment: ETF reconstitution commentary notes Applied’s strong free‑cash‑flow profile could keep it visible to thematic/FCF‑focused ETFs—possible gradual inflows but not an immediate driver of today’s move. Metal, Chips, & Cash: Q1 ‘26 Additions to VictoryShares GFLW
• Neutral Sentiment: MarketWatch flags AMAT’s underperformance versus competitors on the day—useful context on relative strength but not a standalone structural change. Applied Materials Inc. stock underperforms Monday when compared to competitors
• Negative Sentiment: News pieces and headlines point to profit‑taking after a strong run and broader tech weakness as the proximate cause of today’s decline—investors appear to be trimming positions despite solid recent earnings. Why Applied Materials (AMAT) shares are falling today
• Negative Sentiment: Market coverage (Zacks/Yahoo) reiterates the same intraday dip narrative—confirming the move is market‑driven rather than due to new company‑specific bad news. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Dips While Market Gains: Key Facts

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. B. Riley Financial lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Zacks Research raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $368.29.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $404.86 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $367.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $303.58. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $144.71 and a 12-month high of $420.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market cap of $321.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.44, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.64.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials'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. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 earnings per share 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 represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

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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