Keybank National Association OH Grows Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• KeyBank National Association OH increased its stake in Applied Materials (AMAT) by 4.0% to 113,990 shares (worth $29.29M), and institutional investors now own about 80.56% of the company.
• Wall Street is largely bullish — multiple brokers raised price targets (TD Cowen to $450, Citi to $420, Goldman to $390) and the consensus target is $368.29, with 27 analysts rating the stock a Buy versus 7 Holds.
• Applied Materials beat quarterly EPS ($2.38 vs. $2.21 est.), set Q2 guidance of $2.44–$2.84 EPS, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 (annualized $2.12), though the company faces near‑term risks from U.S. export curbs on shipments to China.

Keybank National Association OH raised its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 113,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 4,418 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $29,294,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $19,731,523,000 after buying an additional 330,197 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 225.4% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $3,046,057,000 after buying an additional 10,305,182 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,563,376,000 after buying an additional 3,583,751 shares in the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 42.6% in the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 10,978,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,247,838,000 after buying an additional 3,280,730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 19.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,552,132 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,160,443,000 after buying an additional 1,681,911 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $315.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $368.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,753,615. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 138,565 shares in the company, valued at $50,051,063.65. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group upgraded AMAT to Buy and raised medium‑term earnings forecasts, citing strong AI-driven capital spending that supports demand for Applied’s tools and lifting sentiment. Erste Group Upgrades Applied Materials (AMAT) on AI-Driven Semiconductor Investment
• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley reiterated/expressed bullish views on AMAT, highlighting an improving outlook for semiconductor capital spending — a tailwind for equipment makers. B. Riley Bullish on Applied Materials (AMAT); Sees Better Outlook for Semiconductor Capital Spending
• Positive Sentiment: Applied’s ecosystem buildouts (e.g., Advantest joining its EPIC platform) strengthen its position across the chip supply chain and support long‑term competitive advantages. Is Advantest’s EPIC Tie-Up Reshaping the Long-Term Investment Case for Applied Materials (AMAT)?
• Neutral Sentiment: Applied has recently trended in investor scans and coverage (Zacks feature), driving attention that can amplify intra‑day moves but not necessarily change fundamentals. Here is What to Know Beyond Why Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) is a Trending Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading volume today is below the stock’s recent average, suggesting moves may be driven by news flow and rotation rather than heavy conviction (monitor volume for confirmatory signals).
• Negative Sentiment: The U.S. Commerce Department ordered Applied and other suppliers to stop certain shipments to China’s Hua Hong, tightening export controls and increasing near‑term revenue/exposure risk in Greater China. This is a direct headwind for international sales and investor sentiment. US Export Curbs On Hua Hong Test Applied Materials China Exposure
• Negative Sentiment: Broad semiconductor weakness — partly triggered by reports that OpenAI missed growth targets — pressured chip stocks and pulled AMAT down in the recent sell‑off, creating short‑term volatility risk. What Is Going On With Applied Materials Stock On Tuesday?
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks reduced its rating from Strong Buy to Hold, which can dampen momentum among retail and some quant flows even though other brokers remain constructive. Zacks.com

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $382.59 on Thursday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $368.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $305.33. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.71 and a 52-week high of $420.50. The firm has a market cap of $303.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.38 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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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