Vinva Investment Management Ltd Lowers Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Key Points

• Vinva Investment Management Ltd cut its stake in Applied Materials by 9.8%, selling 7,367 shares and leaving it with 67,665 shares valued at about $13.87 million at quarter-end.
• Corporate insiders have been net sellers recently—including Director Judy Bruner (3,969 shares) and CAO Adam Sanders (534 shares)—with 12,003 shares sold in the past 90 days (≈$4.48M), leaving insiders owning 0.30% of the stock.
• Applied Materials beat quarterly estimates (EPS $2.38 vs. $2.21; revenue $7.01B vs. $6.88B), issued Q2 EPS guidance of 2.440–2.840, has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" (average target $363.46), and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share.

Vinva Investment Management Ltd lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 9.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,665 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 7,367 shares during the quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $13,868,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.5% in the third quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,707,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 7.0% during the third quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 657 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $135,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Sunflower Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 3,287 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $673,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Welch Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total value of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 28,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,778,624.78. This trade represents a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total transaction of $202,471.44. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This represents a 10.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock valued at $4,484,189. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Erste Group Bank started coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Thursday. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. KGI Securities upgraded Applied Materials to an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Applied Materials to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Applied Materials from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $363.46.

Applied Materials Stock Down 6.3%

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $324.74 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.74 and a twelve month high of $395.95. The stock has a market cap of $257.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $326.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $256.15.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.83%.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market pieces highlight a renewed semiconductor opportunity in 2026, which benefits AMAT as a leading chip-equipment supplier; this underpins investor confidence in the company's medium‑to‑long‑term demand. Semiconductor Opportunity Is Here
• Positive Sentiment: A recent feature argues AMAT is balancing near-term sector turbulence while maintaining a long‑term chip demand story — reinforcing buy‑and‑hold narratives for chip-capex exposure. Applied Materials Balances Sector Turbulence With Long Term Chip Demand Story
• Positive Sentiment: Technical commentary notes AMAT broke above its 20‑day moving average, signaling short‑term bullish momentum that can attract momentum traders. Applied Materials (AMAT) Recently Broke Out Above the 20-Day Moving Average
• Positive Sentiment: Context pieces point out AMAT has gained strongly over recent months (≈+33% over three months), showing momentum that can support share prices when markets stabilize. AMAT Climbs 33.4% in 3 Months: Time to Buy, Sell or Hold the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group initiated coverage with a "hold" rating — neither bullish nor bearish but may limit upside from fresh upbeat upgrades. Tickerreport: Erste Group Starts Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent short‑interest data reported as zeros/NaN appear erroneous; no clear signal from short sellers right now (data should be treated cautiously).
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market pressure: Nasdaq weakness and falling futures are dragging high‑beta tech and semicap names lower, pressuring AMAT despite company strengths. Live Nasdaq Composite: Markets Buckle Under Pressure With No Relief in Sight
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical risk and rising oil amid Middle East conflict are lifting energy prices and weighing on risk assets ahead of a key jobs report — a near‑term headwind for AMAT. Stock Futures Fall, Oil Jumps as Middle East War Continues; Key Jobs Report on Deck

About Applied Materials

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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