Sound Shore Management Inc CT Buys 34,722 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Sound Shore Management Inc CT lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 399,239 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 34,722 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises 2.7% of Sound Shore Management Inc CT’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Sound Shore Management Inc CT owned 0.05% of Applied Materials worth $81,740,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.5% during the third quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,707,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 657 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Sunflower Bank N.A. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 3,287 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $673,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $252,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Welch Group LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $356,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock opened at $339.88 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $344.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $269.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $292.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $234.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business’s revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.32 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Applied Materials from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $310.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Applied Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 14th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $315.15.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.24, for a total transaction of $952,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 84,351 shares in the company, valued at $20,095,782.24. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 609 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.53, for a total transaction of $155,617.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,127,653.89. This trade represents a 12.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 8,609 shares of company stock valued at $2,044,898. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

More Applied Materials News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company reached a civil settlement with the U.S. Dept. of Commerce and says DOJ and SEC closed related probes — the outcome removes legal uncertainty and lets management refocus on growth. Applied Materials Reaches Resolution with the U.S. Department of Commerce
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive: RBC reiterated Outperform and other firms (B. Riley, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank) have raised ratings/targets, supporting upside expectations into earnings. Royal Bank Of Canada Reiterates “Outperform” Rating for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT)
• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley recently raised its AMAT price target to $400 (reaffirmed Buy), reflecting confidence in strong FY‑Q1 results and AI-driven demand. B. Riley Raises Applied Materials Price Target to $400
• Positive Sentiment: Applied unveiled new deposition/etch/ALD systems (Viva, Sym3 Z Magnum, Spectral) targeted at 2nm GAA logic — tools are being adopted by leading foundries and address AI compute demand. Applied Materials Unveils Transistor and Wiring Innovations for Faster AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Samsung will join Applied’s new $5B EPIC R&D center — a strategic partnership that strengthens customer ties and long-term equipment demand. Applied Materials Announces Samsung Electronics Will Join the New, Multibillion-Dollar EPIC Center
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings and demand backdrop: previews point to strong wafer‑fab and display strength driven by AI, but valuation is elevated after the recent rally ahead of Q1 results. Applied Materials Q1 Earnings Preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest notes are mixed/confusing in data feeds (recent reporting shows large changes and low days-to-cover); not a clear near-term driver. Quiver Quant Summary
• Negative Sentiment: Applied agreed to pay $252.5M to the Dept. of Commerce for alleged export non‑compliance (Nov 2020–Jul 2022) — a material one‑time charge that will hit cash/earnings for the period and raises questions about past compliance controls. Applied Materials to pay $252 million to resolve illegal chip exports, US says (Reuters)

Applied Materials Company 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.