Venture Visionary Partners LLC Has $2.80 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Venture Visionary Partners LLC increased its Applied Materials stake by 46.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 10,881 shares valued at about $2.8 million.
• Applied Materials reported strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue expectations, and lifted guidance for Q3 2026. The company also recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.53 per share.
• Analysts remain upbeat on AMAT, with several firms raising price targets and the consensus rating sitting at Moderate Buy with a $483.03 average target.

Venture Visionary Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 46.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,881 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,446 shares during the quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,796,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Tradition Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,031 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $265,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC now owns 2,208 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $567,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Godsey & Gibb Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,298 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Family Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Family Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,227 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,086,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 4,582 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,178,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,128 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total transaction of $507,600.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,544 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,944,800. The trade was a 4.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 268 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $434.22, for a total transaction of $116,370.96. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,280 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,461.60. The trade was a 5.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 53,896 shares of company stock valued at $27,135,121. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $585.78 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $599.62. The firm's 50 day moving average is $431.96 and its 200 day moving average is $355.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $465.09 billion, a PE ratio of 55.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.39 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $435.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wolfe Research raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $390.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $483.03.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials unveiled new deposition and selective etch systems designed to improve precision in 3D chip structures, a sign it is targeting growing demand for advanced AI chips and next-generation semiconductor scaling. Applied Materials Unveils Deposition and Selective Etch Systems to Advance 3D Chip Scaling
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target on Applied Materials to $590 from $500 and kept an Overweight rating, reflecting higher expectations for wafer fab equipment spending and capital investment trends. Applied Materials (AMAT) Gets Higher Price Targets from Barclays and Cantor Fitzgerald
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary from Jim Cramer and other bullish articles highlighted AMAT as a stock investors may want to own when semiconductor demand strengthens, adding to the day’s favorable sentiment around the name. Jim Cramer Says “I’ll Go for AMAT”
• Neutral Sentiment: Some market commentary warned that the recent rally has pushed Applied Materials to stretched valuation levels, suggesting the stock may be extended after a sharp rebound and could be vulnerable to a pullback if momentum fades. Buy, Hold, or Sell: Applied Materials Surged Right Back Toward $500 Following a Brutal June Flush. Here’s Where I’d Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha piece argued that AMAT is “not cheap enough to buy” but also “too strong to sell,” reinforcing the view that the stock is richly valued but supported by solid fundamentals. Applied Materials: Not Cheap Enough To Buy, Too Strong To Sell
• Negative Sentiment: One market note said AMAT has already rebounded sharply and may be too extended for fresh buying at current levels, which could limit upside if investors become more cautious. Buy, Hold, or Sell: Applied Materials Surged Right Back Toward $500 Following a Brutal June Flush. Here’s Where I’d Buy

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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