Weaver Capital Management LLC Invests $472,000 in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Weaver Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 1,836 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $472,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 150.0% during the 3rd 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 stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 48.7% during the 4th 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 stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied introduced two deposition systems built for 2nm and beyond (Precision Selective Nitride PECVD and Trillium ALD), aimed at Angstrom‑era logic nodes and GAA transistors — a clear revenue/capacity catalyst if customers scale adoption. Applied Materials Introduces Deposition Systems for Angstrom-Era Logic Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction: multiple outlets report a strong intraday rally after the product launch, reflecting investor enthusiasm that AMAT can capture more AI/advanced‑logic equipment spending. Applied Materials surges as it unveils new chipmaking systems
• Positive Sentiment: Broker support: Goldman Sachs named Applied Materials a top semiconductor pick, which can attract incremental institutional flows and bolster sentiment. Goldman Sachs Names Teradyne (TER), Applied Materials (AMAT), AMD (AMD) as Top Semiconductor Picks
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend/financial signal: recent coverage highlights a company payout increase (board raised quarterly dividend), reinforcing cash‑return discipline and appealing to income‑oriented investors. Here’s What Makes Applied Materials (AMAT) an Unstoppable Technology Stock to Buy Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro tailwind: broader market softened on geopolitics early but turned bullish on an Iran ceasefire, helping chip names including AMAT as risk sentiment improved. Dow Jones Futures Fall, Oil Prices Rise After Iran Ceasefire Rally. Google, Nvidia Partner Lead 7 New Buys
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/positioning debate: analyst pieces question whether recent gains already price in growth (views range from “buy and hold” to cautious on stretched multiples), so future upside may depend on execution and order flow. Applied Materials Just Launched a New Chipmaking System. Should You Buy AMAT Stock Here?
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term risk: coverage reminding investors that stocks that have doubled fast can see sharp pullbacks if order timing or end‑market demand disappoints — a cautionary signal for momentum traders. How to Trade a Stock That Just Doubled

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 trade represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 26,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,219,322.19. This trade represents a 8.74% 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 quarter. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 8.9%

Applied Materials stock opened at $385.72 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $306.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.48, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.94. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $128.60 and a 1 year high of $395.95. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $349.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $285.81.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.88 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.78% and a return on equity of 37.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.38 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $315.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $363.46.

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.