Conning Inc. Sells 4,642 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Conning Inc. reduced its stake in Applied Materials by 21.7% in the first quarter, selling 4,642 shares and ending with 16,761 shares valued at about $5.73 million.
• Applied Materials reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.86 versus $2.68 expected and revenue of $7.91 billion, while also issuing Q3 2026 guidance of $3.16 to $3.56 EPS.
• The stock has seen bullish sentiment from analysts and investors, with several firms raising price targets and major institutions boosting holdings, even as insiders such as the CEO and an SVP recently sold shares.

Conning Inc. trimmed its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 21.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,761 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 4,642 shares during the period. Conning Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,729,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $8,405,458,000 after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $2,858,543,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 617.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,869,170,000 after buying an additional 7,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after buying an additional 3,583,751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 25,824.4% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 3,370,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $86,610,000 after buying an additional 3,357,167 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $602.50 on Friday. 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 firm's fifty day simple moving average is $517.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $402.29. The stock has a market cap of $478.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.57. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $154.46 and a twelve month high of $739.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter 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. As a group, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.13 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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 paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 presently 19.91%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total value of $5,092,941.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This represents a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total value of $42,587,906.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,695,164 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,006,503,625. The trade was a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. B. Riley Financial upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $550.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $525.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $540.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $589.48.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials rallied after CEO Gary Dickerson said chipmakers have “tremendous visibility” into demand, implying the AI investment cycle could support equipment orders for years rather than quarters. Applied Materials (AMAT) Stock Jumps after CEO Says AI Chip Demand Has Years to Run
• Positive Sentiment: Meta Platforms’ reported plan to begin manufacturing an in-house AI chip helped spark a broader rally in semiconductor equipment stocks, including Applied Materials, on expectations that AI infrastructure spending will remain strong. Applied Materials stock jumps as Meta AI chip plan lifts semiconductor names
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel and Needham both raised their price targets on AMAT and kept buy ratings, reinforcing the view that improving fundamentals and AI-driven demand could support further upside. Applied Materials PT Raised to $650 at Stifel
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied Materials was removed from several Russell value-oriented indices in late June, a classification change that reflects the stock’s shift toward being viewed more as an AI/semiconductor growth name than a value stock. How Investors Are Reacting To Applied Materials (AMAT) Being Dropped From Key Russell Value Indices
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no reported short interest as of July 10, offering little evidence of bearish positioning from the latest filing.

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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