Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Sold by EdgePoint Investment Group Inc.

EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 57.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 977,762 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,313,752 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for about 2.7% of EdgePoint Investment Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $334,189,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Evolve Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 59.0% in the 1st quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,875 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $983,000 after purchasing an additional 1,067 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in Applied Materials by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 82,296 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $21,149,000 after purchasing an additional 3,508 shares in the last quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,082,000. Dorato Capital Management bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,744,000. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 183.7% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,073 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $790,000 after buying an additional 1,990 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.28, for a total value 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 $180,204,069.76. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 71,727 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $593.75, for a total value of $42,587,906.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,695,164 shares in the company, valued at $1,006,503,625. The trade was a 4.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 278,088 shares of company stock worth $169,654,805 in the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $516.89 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $154.46 and a 12 month high of $739.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $546.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $425.63. The company has a market cap of $410.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.53, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.57.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 36.97% and a net margin of 29.31%.The company had revenue of $7.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 3.160-3.560 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 19.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $450.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $400.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $540.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $715.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $599.19.

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.