Jennison Associates LLC Raises Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Jennison Associates increased its stake in Applied Materials by 419.7% in Q4 to 102,231 shares, valued at about $26.27 million.
• Several Wall Street firms have raised price targets recently (examples: Needham to $440, Barclays to $450, B. Riley to $485), leaving the consensus at a Moderate Buy with an average target of $368.29 and 27 Buy vs. 7 Hold ratings.
• Applied Materials beat Q4 EPS ($2.38 vs. $2.21), set Q2 2026 guidance of $2.44–$2.84, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 (annualized $2.12, ~0.5% yield).

Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 419.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,231 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 82,559 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $26,272,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,298 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,227 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,096 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,053,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group set a $430.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Barclays raised their target price on Applied Materials from $360.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. B. Riley Financial raised their target price on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Applied Materials from $420.00 to $432.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $368.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total value of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $50,051,063.65. This represents a 3.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total value of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,778,624.78. The trade was a 12.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $389.08 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average is $368.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $305.94. The company has a market capitalization of $308.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 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. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $151.51 and a fifty-two week high of $420.50.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.88 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.38 EPS. The company's quarterly 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. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st 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 of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials's payout ratio is currently 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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