Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC cut its Applied Materials stake by 26.1% in the first quarter, selling 10,441 shares and leaving it with 29,610 shares valued at about $10.1 million.
• Applied Materials reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with earnings of $2.86 per share on revenue of $7.91 billion, and it issued Q3 guidance of $3.16 to $3.56 EPS.
• The stock has seen mixed sentiment: analysts remain broadly positive with a “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of $518.19, but recent insider selling and commentary about valuation suggest the shares may be getting pricey after a sharp rally.

Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 26.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 29,610 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 10,441 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $10,120,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, 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 worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 6.2%

Applied Materials stock opened at $626.84 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $669.22. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $473.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $377.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market cap of $497.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.86, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. Applied Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is 19.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $530.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 15th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price target on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $518.19.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $599.77, for a total transaction of $5,547,872.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,326,071.43. This represents a 18.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 24,263 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.43, for a total value of $14,398,392.09. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 146,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $87,184,361.88. The trade was a 14.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 199,767 shares of company stock valued at $114,104,709. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials introduced new systems for DRAM and advanced packaging, expanding its role in AI chip manufacturing and potentially boosting future demand. Applied Materials Introduces New Systems to Accelerate DRAM and Advanced Packaging for AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts said AMAT’s event highlighted strong opportunities in DRAM and advanced packaging, reinforcing the company’s AI-driven growth narrative. Applied Materials' event focuses on DRAM, and advanced packaging: analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary remains constructive, with analysts still confident in Applied Materials’ strong competitive position. AMAT stock gets thumbs up from Wall Street – analysts remain confident about Applied Materials’ strong market position
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage suggests the stock may be looking expensive after its recent rally, which could limit near-term upside even if the long-term AI story stays intact. Applied Materials stock looks pricey—can AI demand justify the rally?
• Neutral Sentiment: One analysis noted that Applied Materials’ aggressive investment strategy may pressure cash flow in the near term, even though it supports longer-term growth. Can AMAT's Investment Strategy Lift Future Cash Flow Growth?

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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