Capital Research Global Investors Increases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 119.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,707,049 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,829,377 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for 1.6% of Capital Research Global Investors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Capital Research Global Investors’ holdings in Applied Materials were worth $8,405,458,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital International Sarl grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 64.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Sarl now owns 29,160 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,494,000 after purchasing an additional 11,427 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,774,123 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $970,006,000 after buying an additional 40,204 shares in the last quarter. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. now owns 7,995 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,055,000 after buying an additional 683 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 218.2% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 12,288 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,158,000 after buying an additional 8,426 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Telemark Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $10,280,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials continues to benefit from AI-related demand and a deeper push into advanced chip packaging, including its completed acquisition of ASMPT NEXX and expanded collaboration with SCREEN Semiconductor, which could support future growth in semiconductor equipment. Applied Materials Deepens AI Chip Packaging Push As Valuation Stretches
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s recent earnings results beat estimates, with stronger revenue and EPS, and management’s guidance plus recent analyst price-target increases continue to reinforce the bullish longer-term view.
• Neutral Sentiment: TipRanks noted insider trading activity in AMAT as part of a broader weekend update, adding to investor attention but not necessarily changing the fundamental outlook. Rigetti, McDonald’s, Applied Materials, GM, Rocket Lab Insiders Stir Buzz
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider sales by CFO Brice Hill and executive Prabu G. Raja may have pressured shares, as investors often view heavy insider selling cautiously even when the company’s outlook remains solid. Applied Materials CFO Sells Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks broadly sold off after the strong jobs report and broader chip-sector weakness tied to the AVGO earnings overhang, which appears to be dragging AMAT lower with the group. Applied Materials, Lam Research, and Nova Stocks Trade Down, What You Need To Know

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AMAT shares. KGI Securities upgraded Applied Materials to an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $530.00 price target on Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 15th. DZ Bank upgraded Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.13.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total transaction of $25,264,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 356,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $180,204,069.76. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 1,128 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $507,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 26,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,944,800. This represents a 4.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In 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 Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $453.01 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $408.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $342.31. The stock has a market cap of $359.67 billion, a PE ratio of 42.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $510.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.Applied Materials’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.39 earnings per share. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 19.91%.

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.