Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Has $2.58 Million Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Kornitzer Capital Management increased its stake in Applied Materials by 39.8% in Q4 to 10,033 shares, valued at about $2.58 million.
• Company insiders sold a total of 12,003 shares (~$4.48 million) over the last three months — including CFO Brice Hill (5,000 shares) and CAO Adam Sanders (534 shares) — leaving insiders with 0.30% ownership.
• Multiple analysts raised price targets (e.g., Goldman Sachs to $390, Wells Fargo to $435, Needham to $440) and the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus (average target $368.29); Applied Materials also beat quarterly EPS and revenue and set Q2 EPS guidance of 2.44–2.84.

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS boosted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 39.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,033 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 2,856 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,578,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 150.0% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the firm'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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,753,615. This trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the firm'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 directly owned 138,565 shares of the company's stock, 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $350.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $368.29.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $389.08 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $368.64 and a 200-day moving average of $306.55. The company has a market capitalization of $308.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.82, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.66. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $151.51 and a 52 week high of $420.50. 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.38 EPS. 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 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend 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 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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