State of Michigan Retirement System Has $65.86 Million Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• State of Michigan Retirement System trimmed its Applied Materials stake by 4.9% in Q4, selling 13,200 shares and finishing the period with 256,255 shares valued at $65.855 million.
• Applied Materials beat Q1 estimates (non‑GAAP EPS $2.38 vs $2.21; revenue $7.01B) and set Q2 2026 EPS guidance of $2.44–$2.84, with stronger DRAM demand supporting positive analyst sentiment and a consensus "Moderate Buy."
• Dividend increased — the company raised its quarterly payout to $0.53 (from $0.46), payable June 11, equal to a $2.12 annualized dividend and roughly a 0.5% yield.

State of Michigan Retirement System lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 256,255 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 13,200 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $65,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 13,387 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $3,440,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 48,768 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $12,533,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 10,831 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,269 shares during the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,480 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $637,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Facet Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 79.2% during the fourth quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. now owns 3,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $878,000 after acquiring an additional 1,509 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $417.00 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.71 and a fifty-two week high of $420.50. The stock's 50-day moving average is $366.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $302.28. The firm has a market cap of $330.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The firm's revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 28,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,778,624.78. This represents a 12.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.21, for a total transaction of $1,806,050.00. Following the completion of 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. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results and DRAM strength — Applied beat estimates (non-GAAP EPS $2.38 vs $2.21) and reported record DRAM revenue now ~34% of Semiconductor Systems revenue, supporting a stronger memory-driven growth outlook. Philippe Laffont's Coatue Is Betting Billions on These 3 AI Stocks. Here's Why Smart Money Sees AI Dominance
• Positive Sentiment: Tesla terafab participation — Applied joined Tesla’s Terafab project, a potential validation of AMAT’s equipment roadmap and a source of future equipment orders if Tesla scales fabs. Applied Materials Just Joined the Tesla Terafab Project. Does That Make AMAT Stock a Buy?
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile bullish endorsements — Jim Cramer publicly called AMAT “a great buy,” and buy-side interest (e.g., Coatue) draws retail and institutional attention that can support momentum. Jim Cramer on Applied Materials: “It’s Not a Good Buy, It’s a Great Buy”
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street and sector tailwinds — Analysts and industry write-ups expect double-digit EPS growth next quarter and highlight semiconductor/AI-driven demand (especially for memory/DRAM), which benefits AMAT’s equipment backlog and margin outlook. What to Expect From Applied Materials' Q2 2026 Earnings Report
• Positive Sentiment: Industry buy lists and thematic coverage — AMAT appears on semiconductor/AI-themed buy lists (Zacks, industry commentaries) as investors favor companies exposed to AI, ML and memory demand. 3 Stocks to Buy From the Prospering Semiconductor Industry
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings date set — Applied will report fiscal Q2 2026 results on May 14; the event is a clear near-term catalyst but outcome/tone will determine direction. Applied Materials to Report Fiscal Second Quarter 2026 Results on May 14, 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Speculative upside narratives — Coverage arguing AMAT could be a trillion-dollar company candidate is bullish headline-grabbing speculation but depends on sustained margin and end-market expansion. Applied Materials (AMAT): Analyzing the Next Stock to Breach the Trillion Dollar Barrier
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data anomaly — a report shows a “large increase” but lists zero shares and NaN changes; likely a data glitch rather than actionable short-squeeze signal. (source: short interest report)
• Neutral Sentiment: Misc. buy/sell write-ups — Multiple “is AMAT a buy?” pieces and commentaries summarize bull cases; they reinforce investor interest but add no new company-specific catalysts. Is Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) A Good Stock To Buy Now?

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Erste Group Bank upgraded Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. UBS Group set a $430.00 price target on Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. DZ Bank upgraded Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. KGI Securities raised Applied Materials to an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $368.29.

Applied Materials 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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