Empowered Funds LLC Buys 85,667 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC significantly increased its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. by 173.6%, acquiring an additional 85,667 shares during the first quarter, bringing their total holdings to 135,001 shares worth approximately $19,591,000.
• Institutional investors now own 80.56% of Applied Materials' stock, with notable increases from other firms such as Nuveen LLC and Pacer Advisors Inc., highlighting a strong interest in the company.
• Analysts have set mixed price targets for Applied Materials, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price averaging $193.88 despite some firms reducing their estimates.

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 173.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 135,001 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 85,667 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $19,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth about $1,085,600,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 2,401.0% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,066,817 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $445,056,000 after buying an additional 2,944,193 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 18,402.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,647,430,000 after buying an additional 1,814,444 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Applied Materials by 43.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,573,673 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $808,853,000 after buying an additional 1,691,428 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 23.6% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,860,838 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,140,836,000 after buying an additional 1,502,995 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $946,580. This represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on AMAT. Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $180.00 price target (down from $190.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. B. Riley dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $170.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 15th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $193.88.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of AMAT opened at $162.05 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $215.70. The firm has a market cap of $129.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.77. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $179.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $164.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.50.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. The business had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. Applied Materials's quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.

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