Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. Purchases Shares of 2,888 Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. has acquired a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. during the first quarter, buying 2,888 shares valued at approximately $449,000.
• Applied Materials reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.48, beating estimates and showing a 7.7% year-over-year revenue increase to $7.30 billion.
• The stock has an analyst consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $193.88, reflecting optimistic growth prospects despite some recent price target reductions from various analysts.

Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,888 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $449,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Applied Materials by 23.6% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,860,838 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,140,836,000 after buying an additional 1,502,995 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its position in Applied Materials by 15.8% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 7,656,034 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,038,504,000 after buying an additional 1,046,635 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,085,600,000. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in Applied Materials by 20.7% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 7,189,402 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,043,326,000 after buying an additional 1,235,097 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Applied Materials by 43.6% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,573,673 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $808,853,000 after buying an additional 1,691,428 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded down $2.08 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $168.07. 4,112,324 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,366,005. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company has a market cap of $133.89 billion, a PE ratio of 20.03, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $178.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $164.70. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $215.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $7.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.21 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. Applied Materials's revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.93%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the business'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 transaction of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $225.00 price objective for the company. DZ Bank cut shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Summit Insights lowered shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $192.92.

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.