Short Interest in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Increases By 37.3%

Key Points

• Short interest in Applied Materials, Inc. increased by 37.3% in August, totaling 22,430,000 shares, indicating a potentially bearish sentiment among investors.
• The company reported $2.48 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $7.30 billion, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 7.7%.
• Applied Materials announced a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, with a yield of 1.1%, scheduled for payout on December 11th.

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 22,430,000 shares, an increase of 37.3% from the August 15th total of 16,340,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 7,130,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days. Currently, 2.8% of the company's stock are short sold. Currently, 2.8% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 7,130,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.9%

Applied Materials stock opened at $170.93 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The company has a market capitalization of $136.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.77. Applied Materials has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $215.70. The company's fifty day moving average price is $177.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $164.84.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.21 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $205.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Mizuho reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $175.00 price target (down from $200.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $180.00 price target (down from $190.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $169.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $192.92.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Value Partners Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 9,896 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,608,000 after acquiring an additional 793 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 10,767.6% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,347,580 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $219,157,000 after acquiring an additional 1,335,180 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 756.1% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 511,100 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $83,120,000 after acquiring an additional 451,400 shares during the period. Finally, Triglav Skladi D.O.O. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,115,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Applied Materials

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.

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