Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Sells 6,900 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych cut its Applied Materials stake by 41.9% in the first quarter, selling 6,900 shares and leaving it with 9,550 shares worth about $3.26 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains bullish overall: analysts have mostly Buy ratings on AMAT, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $509.65, while several firms recently raised their targets.
• Applied Materials posted solid results last quarter, beating EPS and revenue estimates, and the company also benefited from upbeat AI-chip demand news, including new systems for DRAM and advanced packaging.

Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych lessened its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 41.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,550 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 6,900 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for approximately 1.7% of Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,264,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 26.7% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,225 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $590,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Forefront Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $410,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 30.1% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 15,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,747,000 after acquiring an additional 3,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 59.3% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 422,694 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $77,383,000 after acquiring an additional 157,426 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Truist Financial set a $575.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $770.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $540.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $509.65.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total transaction of $25,264,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total value of $42,587,906.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,695,164 shares in the company, valued at $1,006,503,625. This trade represents a 4.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 199,767 shares of company stock worth $114,104,709 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $668.00 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $468.89 and a 200-day moving average of $375.60. The company has a market capitalization of $530.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $669.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its 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. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.39 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Applied Materials News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials unveiled new systems for DRAM and advanced packaging, including tools for higher-yield chip stacking and wafer metrology, strengthening its position in AI chip manufacturing. Applied Materials Introduces New Systems to Accelerate DRAM and Advanced Packaging for AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary has turned more upbeat, with Wells Fargo raising its price target sharply and other coverage pointing to continued strength in semiconductor equipment demand and AI infrastructure spending. Is Applied Materials (AMAT) the Best All-Time High Stock with Legs to Rally Further?
• Positive Sentiment: Broader AI-chip optimism also helped sentiment across the sector, with Micron-led strength reinforcing the idea that memory and chip-equipment names could benefit from the next leg of AI spending. Micron Sparks Fresh AI Stock Rally
• Neutral Sentiment: Short interest data showed no meaningful bearish positioning change, so this does not appear to be a driver of the stock move. Applied Materials stock information

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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