Bleakley Financial Group LLC Acquires 5,415 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Bleakley Financial Group boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 13.7% in the fourth quarter, adding 5,415 shares and bringing its total holding to 44,980 shares worth about $11.56 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains bullish, with several firms raising price targets recently; the stock carries a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of $465.14.
• Applied Materials reported strong results and raised its dividend, beating earnings and revenue expectations for the quarter and increasing its quarterly payout to $0.53 from $0.46.

Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 13.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,980 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 5,415 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $11,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 48.7% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 52.4% during the 4th quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 147.2% during the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total value of $979,275.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 26,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. KGI Securities upgraded shares of Applied Materials to an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $525.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $465.14.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $432.16 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $342.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $388.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $328.11. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $153.47 and a 12-month high of $448.45.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. The company's 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. Research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share 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 paid a $0.53 dividend. This is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 19.91%.

About Applied Materials

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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