Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 4,716 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Exencial Wealth Advisors trimmed its stake in Applied Materials by 34% in Q4, selling 4,716 shares and leaving it with 9,154 shares valued at about $2.35 million at quarter-end.
• Wall Street sentiment is broadly positive with several firms raising price targets (some as high as $450) and a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” (average target $368.29); Applied also beat Q results (EPS $2.38 vs. $2.21) and guided Q2 EPS to $2.44–$2.84.
• Near-term risks include a U.S. Commerce order restricting some chip-equipment shipments to China’s Hua Hong—Applied received restriction letters—and broader semiconductor sell-off and geopolitical tensions that could pressure revenue and share volatility.

Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 34.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,154 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 4,716 shares during the quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. RMR Wealth Builders raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 1,209 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $311,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Anchyra Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $840,000. Aprio Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 137.5% in the fourth quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,329,000 after acquiring an additional 2,995 shares in the last quarter. Alexis Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Alexis Investment Partners LLC now owns 10,051 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,605,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 26,032 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $6,690,000 after acquiring an additional 2,258 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley expresses a more optimistic outlook for semiconductor capital spending and is bullish on Applied’s positioning, providing a near-term analyst tailwind that could support the stock if capex demand reaccelerates. B. Riley Bullish on Applied Materials (AMAT); Sees Better Outlook for Semiconductor Capital Spending
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnership news — Advantest joining Applied’s EPIC platform and opening an Innovation Center — strengthens Applied’s ecosystem play across front-end process and back-end test, a structural positive for long-term revenue and differentiation. Is Advantest’s EPIC Tie-Up Reshaping the Long-Term Investment Case for Applied Materials (AMAT)?
• Neutral Sentiment: Broker commentary remains generally constructive (average brokerage recommendations and a recent Erste upgrade), which supports conviction among longer-term investors even as headlines create volatility. Brokers Suggest Investing in Applied Materials (AMAT): Read This Before Placing a Bet
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. Commerce Department ordered chip-equipment firms to halt some shipments to China’s Hua Hong, and Applied was among companies receiving restriction letters — a direct near-term revenue risk for tools sales into China. U.S. halts chip equipment shipments to China's Hua Hong
• Negative Sentiment: Broader semiconductor sell-off (spurred by reports that OpenAI missed growth targets and sector rotation) is weighing on AMAT alongside peers, amplifying volatility and driving short-term downside. What Is Going On With Applied Materials Stock On Tuesday?
• Negative Sentiment: Macro risk: Middle East tensions pushed oil higher and contributed to risk-off trading that pressured tech and chip stocks broadly. US Equity Markets End Lower as Chipmakers Slide, Middle East Tensions Lift Oil

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on AMAT. KGI Securities upgraded Applied Materials to an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $350.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $368.29.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the sale, the director owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. The trade was a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,753,615. This represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $381.17 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.71 and a fifty-two week high of $420.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.01, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 2.71. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $367.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $304.78.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.38 earnings per share. The company's revenue 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 analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is presently 21.70%.

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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