Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Boosts Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Cambridge Investment Research Advisors increased its stake in Applied Materials by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 138,129 shares worth about $35.5 million.
• Applied Materials reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.86 and revenue of $7.91 billion, and it raised its Q3 2026 guidance as AI infrastructure spending boosts demand.
• Wall Street remains largely bullish: several firms lifted price targets after the earnings report, while the company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.46 to $0.53 per share.

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 138,129 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,752 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $35,498,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Applied Materials by 147.2% during the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $436.62 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $346.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $379.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $320.06. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $153.47 and a twelve month high of $448.45.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $415.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $463.89.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total value of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials posted record Q2 results, beating EPS and revenue expectations and lifting its outlook, with management citing strong AI infrastructure spending as a key growth driver. Applied Materials Announces Second Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street turned more bullish after the report, with multiple firms raising price targets, including Bank of America, JPMorgan, Mizuho, Morgan Stanley, Needham, and KeyCorp, reinforcing confidence in multi-year earnings growth. Applied Materials Sees Multi-Year AI Boom Driving Record Revenue And Growth Through 2028
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts highlighted a durable AI-driven semiconductor upcycle, suggesting Applied Materials could sustain elevated demand and margins through 2027-2028. Krish Sankar Reaffirms Buy on Applied Materials
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader market backdrop is weaker, with major indexes down as Treasury yields and oil prices rise, which is adding headwinds for high-valuation tech and AI stocks. Stock Market Today: Dow Falls As Oil Prices, Yields Jump; Applied Materials, Nvidia, Cerebras Slide
• Negative Sentiment: Even with the strong earnings report, the stock is slipping as investors rotate out after a sharp year-to-date rally, showing some concern that expectations may already be very high. Applied Materials slips despite record quarter and strong outlook (AMAT)

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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