Dakota Wealth Management Purchases 3,208 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Dakota Wealth Management increased its stake in Applied Materials by 19%, buying 3,208 shares to hold 20,073 shares worth about $5.16 million at the end of the quarter.
• Analysts have been raising targets (examples: Jefferies $360, Stifel $450, Cantor Fitzgerald $470, Citi $420), leaving the stock with a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating and an average target of $363.46.
• Applied Materials beat quarterly estimates with $2.38 EPS (vs. $2.21 expected) and $7.01B revenue, provided Q2 guidance of $2.44–$2.84 EPS, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 (from $0.46).

Dakota Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,073 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 3,208 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,159,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its position in Applied Materials by 254.3% in the 4th quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 74,269 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $19,086,000 after buying an additional 53,305 shares during the last quarter. Kelly Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $563,000. Baker Chad R boosted its position in Applied Materials by 76.6% during the 4th quarter. Baker Chad R now owns 16,530 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $4,297,000 after acquiring an additional 7,170 shares during the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $317,000. Finally, Norden Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 12,108 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $3,112,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $470.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $337.17 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market capitalization of $267.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.65. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $395.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $345.04 and a 200-day moving average of $275.21.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.38 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Applied Materials News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Record DRAM tools, new 2nm GAA tool announcements, a 15% dividend increase and steps to strengthen Asian logistics support renewed optimism about AMAT’s AI/DRAM exposure and cash returns to shareholders. Applied Materials Is Up After Record DRAM Tools, Dividend Hike And AI Supply-Chain Push
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst research (Erste Group) is modeling materially higher EPS for FY2026–FY2027 versus consensus (Erste’s FY2027 $13.96 estimate vs. current consensus ~ $9.38), signaling some brokers expect stronger multi-year profitability. Erste Group EPS Estimates for AMAT
• Positive Sentiment: Research notes point to growing end markets—high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and advanced packaging for AI chips—that could accelerate AMAT revenue beyond cyclicality in legacy fabs. Can HBM and Packaging Demand Accelerate AMAT's Revenue Growth?
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and positioning pieces comparing ASML and Applied highlight both stocks as strong buys but emphasize different moats; ASML retains a premium for EUV dominance while AMAT is seen as cheaper exposure to broad equipment demand. ASML vs. Applied Materials: Which Chip Equipment Stock Offers Better Value in 2026?
• Neutral Sentiment: A MarketBeat piece flags that tech earnings growth hasn’t fully translated into ETF/stock price gains, suggesting broader market flow dynamics (not company fundamentals) may be capping AMAT’s rally. As Tech Earnings Grow, This ETF Still Hasn't Caught Up (AMAT)
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst and media comparisons are elevating ACM Research (ACMR) as a better pure-play WFE/AI equipment buy, which can divert investor dollars away from AMAT in the near term. AMAT vs. ACMR: Which WFE Stock is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Several articles spotlight ACMR’s momentum and niche wins in wafer-cleaning and AI-driven segments, amplifying competitive fear and rotation risk for AMAT. This AI Semi Equipment Maker Has Been Quietly Chewing Up the Competition
• Negative Sentiment: Broad-sector weakness hit semiconductor-equipment names in a recent selloff (Teradyne, Intel, KLA, Semtech cited alongside AMAT), pressuring the stock independent of AMAT-specific fundamentals. Teradyne, Applied Materials, Intel, KLA and Semtech Shares Plummet

Applied Materials 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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