Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. Cuts Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 65.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 2,123 shares during the quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $286,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AMAT. SG Trading Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $252,000. Sonoma Allocations LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Sonoma Allocations LLC now owns 3,396 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $873,000 after buying an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Monetary Solutions Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Kera Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $184,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $959,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,695,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,006,503,625. This trade represents a 4.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 40,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 189,767 shares of company stock valued at $107,769,409. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $617.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $489.96 billion, a PE ratio of 57.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $451.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $364.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $154.46 and a fifty-two week high of $638.90.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $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 expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AMAT. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $415.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Truist Financial set a $575.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $489.16.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials’ AGS services business is being highlighted as a long-term growth engine, with AI-enabled services and expanding margins potentially creating more recurring revenue. Can AMAT's AGS Business Become a Long-Term Growth Driver?
• Positive Sentiment: Shares are benefiting from renewed enthusiasm around AI demand and strong earnings momentum, with articles noting the stock has been hitting new highs after solid results and upbeat guidance. AI Demand, Earnings Send Applied Materials to New Highs
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials launched SENZ with Qualcomm and EssilorLuxottica for AI eyewear, reinforcing investor hopes that the company can expand beyond core chipmaking tools into adjacent growth markets. Applied Materials (AMAT) Launches SENZ With Qualcomm And EssilorLuxottica For AI Eyewear
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains constructive, with higher price targets such as Citi’s $710 view helping fuel the rally by suggesting AI demand can justify the premium valuation. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Rallies 8.75% on Citi’s Bullish $710 Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Several insiders, including CEO Gary Dickerson and SVP Omkaram Nalamasu, sold shares this week; while the sales were small relative to their remaining holdings, they can weigh on sentiment. Why Applied Materials Insiders Sold $65 Million Worth of Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary warns the stock looks expensive after a sharp year-to-date surge, with valuation comparisons to the dot-com era potentially prompting caution despite the strong fundamental backdrop. Applied Materials stock valuation and performance

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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