Compass Financial Management LLC Acquires Shares of 2,839 Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,839 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,053,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AMAT. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 2.1% in the second quarter. Innovative Asset Advisors Group LLC now owns 961 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $695,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 1,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $725,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5.9% during the second quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 13.0% during the second quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 183 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $735.22, for a total transaction of $14,704,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,599,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,176,236,570.46. This represents a 1.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 10,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.53, for a total value of $6,335,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 346,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $219,608,106.26. The trade was a 2.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 276,692 shares of company stock valued at $169,030,834 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $520.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Susquehanna raised their price target on Applied Materials from $575.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $675.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Wolfe Research boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Craig Hallum boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $530.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $657.76.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $480.04 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $154.46 and a 1 year high of $739.67. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $558.87 and its 200-day moving average is $454.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $380.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.38, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 30.05% and a return on equity of 38.02%. The business had revenue of $9.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.820-4.220 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.28%.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Materials

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

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reportedly named Applied Materials a “top pick,” citing the company’s exposure to the continued buildout of AI infrastructure and chip-manufacturing capacity. Applied Materials Stock Is Named a Top Pick at Goldman Sachs
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see significant upside after the stock’s decline from its high, with AI-driven semiconductor investment and record quarterly revenue supporting bullish price targets. One report cited an average target near $641, implying roughly 32% potential appreciation from recent levels. Wall Street Sees Rally Despite Decline From Peak
• Positive Sentiment: Applied Materials is viewed as a key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending because its equipment and engineering solutions are essential to advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Why Investors Should Buy the Dip in AMAT
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its Applied Materials price target from $650 to $590 but retained an “outperform” rating. The reduced target reflects more cautious expectations, while the rating still indicates confidence in the company’s longer-term prospects. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: The reported August short-interest figures show zero shares and a mathematically invalid change, making the data unreliable and unlikely to provide a meaningful trading signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Semiconductor stocks broadly declined as investors reduced risk ahead of NVIDIA’s results, weighing on Applied Materials alongside other chipmakers. Semiconductor Stocks Slide Ahead of NVIDIA Earnings

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.