Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 330,197 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake by 330,197 shares to own 76,779,340 shares (about 9.68% of the company), a position valued at roughly $19.7 billion per its latest SEC filing.
• Applied beat Q1 estimates (non‑GAAP EPS $2.38 vs $2.21) and reported record DRAM revenue (~34% of Semiconductor Systems), set Q2 guidance of $2.44–$2.84 EPS, and joined Tesla’s Terafab project — signaling stronger memory-driven demand and potential future equipment orders.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 ($2.12 annualized), while insiders have sold 12,003 shares totaling about $4.48 million over the past 90 days.

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 76,779,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 330,197 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.68% of Applied Materials worth $19,731,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 150.0% in the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 48.7% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. DZ Bank raised Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on 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 set a $430.00 price objective on Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group set a $430.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $368.29.

Key Headlines 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?

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at $10,219,322.19. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following 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 ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $417.00 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.71 and a 1 year high of $420.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $366.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $301.68. The company has a market cap of $330.94 billion, a PE ratio of 42.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.64.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.38 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.70%.

Applied Materials Company 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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