Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Increases Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. has increased its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. by 6.2%, owning 472,860 shares valued at approximately $68.6 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Applied Materials reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings with an EPS of $2.48, surpassing estimates by $0.12, and noted a 7.7% revenue increase from the same quarter last year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.46, representing an annual yield of 1.1%, with the payout ratio currently at 21.93%.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 6.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 472,860 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 27,607 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned about 0.06% of Applied Materials worth $68,621,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter worth approximately $1,085,600,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 2,401.0% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,066,817 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $445,056,000 after buying an additional 2,944,193 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,647,430,000 after acquiring an additional 1,814,444 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Applied Materials by 43.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,573,673 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $808,853,000 after acquiring an additional 1,691,428 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Applied Materials by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,663,780,000 after acquiring an additional 1,602,645 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $162.49 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $215.70. The firm has a market cap of $130.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.37, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.70. The business's 50 day moving average is $183.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $166.01.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 41.31%. The company had revenue of $7.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.21 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.12 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Summit Insights lowered Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 15th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Cfra Research upgraded Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $215.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $193.88.

Applied Materials Company Profile

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.

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