Cardinal Capital Management Inc. Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Cardinal Capital Management cut its Applied Materials stake by 45.8% in the second quarter, selling 85,994 shares and retaining 101,688 shares valued at approximately $73.5 million. Institutional investors overall own 80.56% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: Applied Materials has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $603.23, supported by optimism around AI and semiconductor-equipment demand.
• Strong fundamentals face valuation and insider-selling concerns. The company recently exceeded earnings and revenue estimates, but trades at a P/E ratio near 49, while insiders sold 278,088 shares worth about $169.7 million over the past three months.

Cardinal Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 45.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 101,688 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 85,994 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up approximately 1.8% of Cardinal Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Cardinal Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $73,520,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Evolve Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 59.0% during the 1st quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,875 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $983,000 after buying an additional 1,067 shares during the last quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,082,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 183.7% in the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,073 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $790,000 after buying an additional 1,990 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 376,513 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $96,760,000 after buying an additional 32,136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CloudAlpha Capital Management Limited Hong Kong raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 204.8% in the fourth quarter. CloudAlpha Capital Management Limited Hong Kong now owns 140,773 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $36,177,000 after acquiring an additional 94,587 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI and semiconductor demand remain key bullish catalysts. Jim Cramer highlighted Applied Materials alongside Lam Research and KLA as beneficiaries of data-center memory bottlenecks and expected demand for chipmaking equipment. The company’s broad technology portfolio and exposure to AI infrastructure continue to support the long-term growth case. Jim Cramer semiconductor equipment analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst earnings expectations have improved. A report indicated that an analyst raised the fiscal 2027 EPS forecast, while pre-earnings estimates call for approximately $9 billion in quarterly revenue and $3.39 in EPS. These expectations imply continued year-over-year growth and could support the shares if management delivers or raises guidance. Applied Materials EPS forecast update
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials expanded its chip-innovation ecosystem. UC Berkeley will join the company’s EPIC Center, giving researchers access to industry-scale equipment and process-integration capabilities. The collaboration could accelerate semiconductor research and commercialization, although the financial benefit is longer term. UC Berkeley joins Applied Materials EPIC Center
• Neutral Sentiment: Options markets are anticipating a significant earnings-related move. Traders expect substantial volatility around Thursday’s results, as investors assess revenue, EPS, margins, orders and fiscal 2026 guidance. Applied Materials expected earnings move
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and competitive risks are limiting enthusiasm. William Blair initiated coverage with a Market Perform rating, citing strong AI-driven fundamentals but arguing that valuation and competition cap upside. With a trailing P/E near 49, the stock may require an earnings beat and constructive outlook to regain momentum. William Blair Applied Materials rating

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on AMAT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $510.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $525.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $645.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $603.23.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.7%

Applied Materials stock opened at $525.61 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $739.67. The firm's 50-day moving average is $561.46 and its 200-day moving average is $441.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51. The company has a market cap of $417.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.35, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.61.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is 19.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total transaction of $6,335,300.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 346,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,608,106.26. This represents a 2.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total value of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This trade represents a 18.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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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