Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Sells 21,183 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. reduced its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. by 14.1%, selling 21,183 shares during the first quarter, and now holds 129,255 shares valued at $18.73 million.
• Recent quarterly earnings showed Applied Materials reporting $2.48 EPS, exceeding estimates, with revenue reaching $7.30 billion, up 7.7% year-over-year.
• A quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share was announced, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 1.1%, with the ex-dividend date set for August 21st.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. lessened its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 14.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 129,255 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 21,183 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $18,730,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,085,600,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 2,401.0% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,066,817 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $445,056,000 after acquiring an additional 2,944,193 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,647,430,000 after acquiring an additional 1,814,444 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,663,780,000 after acquiring an additional 1,602,645 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 301.6% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,959,997 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $318,754,000 after acquiring an additional 1,471,953 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $162.22 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $215.70. The company has a market capitalization of $130.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $183.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $166.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.46.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $7.30 billion during 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 41.31%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective (down previously from $190.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 15th. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $194.84.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total transaction of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.