IFP Advisors Inc Sells 8,987 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• IFP Advisors reduced its stake in Applied Materials by 35.1%, selling 8,987 shares and leaving 16,612 shares valued at about $3.55 million.
• Applied Materials announced a 15% quarterly dividend increase to $0.53 and reported quarterly results that beat EPS estimates ($2.38 vs. $2.21) with revenue of $7.01 billion, and issued Q2 guidance of $2.44–$2.84.
• Company insiders have sold 12,003 shares (~$4.48 million) in the past three months, including CFO Brice Hill, while institutional ownership remains high at about 80.6%.

IFP Advisors Inc lowered its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 35.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,612 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 8,987 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,552,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied announced a 15% increase to its quarterly dividend (to $0.53/share), with the next payment in June — a shareholder-friendly move that supports the stock after its strong run and signals confidence in cash flow. Applied Materials Raises Its Dividend 15%
• Positive Sentiment: Applied is listed in actively managed dividend and thematic ETFs that have seen large inflows, which can provide steady buying demand from fund flows. Active ETFs Surge Past Passive, and These Are in the Lead
• Neutral Sentiment: Quarterly review pieces position AMAT among semiconductor-equipment winners for the quarter — earnings beat and revenue roughly in line — but note mixed revenue trends across peers; these analyses help frame valuation expectations but don’t change near-term fundamentals. Winners And Losers Of Q4: Applied Materials NASDAQ: AMAT Vs The Rest Of The Semiconductor Manufacturing Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry coverage of peers (e.g., Lam Research) highlights strong AI-driven capex but raises questions about sustainability — this is a sector-level readthrough that could influence investor sentiment for AMAT over 2026. Can Lam Research's Systems Business Sustain Growth Amid AI Capex Boom?
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent short-interest notices for AMAT contain implausible/zero values (0 shares, NaN increases), indicating data reporting issues rather than a clear short-squeeze signal; treat short-interest readings with caution until corrected.
• Negative Sentiment: Macroeconomic volatility is weighing on market breadth: oil prices and U.S. Treasury yields spiking have helped push major indices below technical support, which typically pressures cyclicals and capex-exposed names like AMAT. Dow Jones Breaks As Oil Prices, Yields Soar, But Then Trump Mulls 'Winding Down' Iran War
• Negative Sentiment: Sector volatility shown by peers (e.g., Micron moving lower despite strong results) reflects investor caution in semiconductors — good company-specific news for AMAT may still be offset by risk-off flows. Dow Jones Futures: Oil Backs Off $100; Micron Skids Despite Blowout Earnings

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 138,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,051,063.65. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. DZ Bank raised Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Mizuho raised their price target on Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $180.00 to $400.00 in a report on Sunday, January 11th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $360.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $357.06 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $283.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.65. 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 has a 50 day moving average price of $340.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $268.38. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $395.95.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The firm's revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.83%.

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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