Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Envestnet Portfolio Solutions cut its stake in Applied Materials by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 91,209 shares valued at about $23.4 million.
• Wall Street remains bullish on Applied Materials, with several analysts raising price targets; the stock now carries an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target of $463.89.
• The company posted better-than-expected quarterly results, raised its dividend to $0.53 per share, and saw insider selling from Director Judy Bruner and CAO Adam Sanders.

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 91,209 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 4,717 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $23,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 52.4% in 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 last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 147.2% in the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $440.00 to $530.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. 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 report on Friday. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $410.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. B. Riley Financial upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Twenty-six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $463.89.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 28,589 shares in the company, valued at $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 7,003 shares of company stock worth $2,678,139 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $413.57 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $380.43 and a 200 day moving average of $321.37. 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 stock has a market cap of $328.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.83, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.66. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $153.47 and a 52-week high of $448.45.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for 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 firm's revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 17.28%.

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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