LSV Asset Management Cuts Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management cut its Applied Materials stake by 36.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 609,890 shares and ending with 1,056,616 shares valued at about $271.5 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains positive on AMAT, with multiple analysts raising price targets and the stock holding a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target of $465.14.
• Applied Materials reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue, and it also raised its dividend to $0.53 per share from $0.46.

LSV Asset Management trimmed its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 36.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,056,616 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 609,890 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned 0.13% of Applied Materials worth $271,540,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 48.7% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 128 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 147.2% during the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 131 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $502.00 target price (up from $454.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $465.14.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $432.16 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $153.47 and a 52 week high of $448.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $342.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.58, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.66. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $387.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $326.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The business's revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company 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 $0.53 dividend. 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.91%.

Insider Activity

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 value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares in the company, 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 7,003 shares of company stock valued at $2,678,139 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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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