Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Purchased by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 39,468 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,354 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,225,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Shelton Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.5% during the second quarter. Shelton Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,398 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $622,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the second quarter. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,200 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.8% during the second quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,433 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.7% during the second quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,958 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Encompass Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.4% during the second quarter. Encompass Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,601 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $217.51 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $173.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.82. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $226.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $181.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $170.63.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.21 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.910-2.310 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $175.00 target price (down from $200.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets restated a “neutral” rating and set a $170.00 target price (down from $185.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $196.85.

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.