Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. Has $20.83 Million Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. by 2.5%, bringing their total holdings to approximately $20.83 million.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Applied Materials, with Wells Fargo reducing its target price from $215.00 to $205.00 while Morgan Stanley raised it from $169.00 to $172.00, reflecting varied sentiment among investors.
• Applied Materials announced a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, with a payout ratio currently at 21.93%, indicating a stable dividend policy amidst its ongoing growth efforts.

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 2.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 143,503 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 3,510 shares during the quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $20,825,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AMAT. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% in the 1st quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 435.0% during the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 214 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Disciplina Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 91.5% in the 1st quarter. Disciplina Capital Management LLC now owns 272 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $215.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $169.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Daiwa America downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $193.88.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of AMAT opened at $161.99 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $129.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.70. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $215.70. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $182.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's payout ratio is presently 21.93%.

Applied Materials Company Profile

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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