GTS Securities LLC Grows Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Institutional ownership increased: GTS Securities raised its Applied Materials position by 473.6% in the second quarter to 4,107 shares valued at approximately $2.97 million. Institutional investors collectively own 80.56% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish: One analyst rates AMAT a Strong Buy, 27 rate it Buy and five rate it Hold, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $657.76.
• Strong operating results support the outlook: Applied Materials reported quarterly EPS of $3.50 and revenue of $9.12 billion, exceeding estimates, with revenue up 24.8% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, although recent insider sales may create a modest sentiment overhang.

GTS Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 473.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,391 shares during the period. GTS Securities LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,969,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. B. Riley Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $700.00 price objective (down from $790.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 14th. HC Wainwright set a $850.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Applied Materials from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $645.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, HSBC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $683.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, July 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $657.76.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $461.67 on Monday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $550.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $457.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $154.46 and a 12-month high of $739.67. The firm has a market cap of $366.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.80, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.40 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.99 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 38.02% and a net margin of 30.05%.The firm's revenue was up 24.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.48 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.76 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials's payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Semiconductor and AI demand remains strong: Recent coverage highlights Applied Materials’ $9.12 billion third-quarter revenue, up 25% year over year, and non-GAAP EPS of $3.50, up 41%. Management cited record demand visibility from AI infrastructure, more than 10 new fab projects during the quarter and fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $10.25 billion. The company is also continuing share repurchases and investing $5 billion in its EPIC Center to accelerate semiconductor innovation. The AI Buildout Is Turning Applied Materials Into A Profit Machine
• Positive Sentiment: New board member adds semiconductor expertise: AMAT appointed Akash Palkhiwala, Qualcomm’s CFO and COO, to its board and Audit Committee. His finance, operations and industry experience could strengthen oversight as Applied Materials pursues growth tied to advanced logic, memory and AI chip production. Applied Materials Appoints Akash Palkhiwala to Board of Directors
• Neutral Sentiment: Options market signals elevated uncertainty: A new analysis says options pricing for roughly one year ahead implies a particularly wide potential trading range, extending materially below and above the current level. That suggests investors should expect significant volatility rather than providing a clear directional signal. How Far Applied Materials Stock Can Move In A Year
• Negative Sentiment: CFO share sale may weigh modestly on sentiment: CFO Brice Hill sold 7,500 AMAT shares for approximately $3.6 million, reducing his direct holdings by 5.51%. The sale does not alter the company’s operating outlook, but insider selling can create a limited short-term sentiment overhang. SEC Insider Transaction Filing

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total transaction of $42,587,906.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,695,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,006,503,625. This trade represents a 4.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy M. Deane sold 8,621 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.76, for a total transaction of $5,092,941.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 134,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,534,609.56. This trade represents a 6.02% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 284,192 shares of company stock valued at $172,625,209 in the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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