Daviman Financial LLC Makes New $594,000 Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Daviman Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,310 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $594,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Applied Materials by 225.4% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,877,672 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,046,057,000 after buying an additional 10,305,182 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 617.2% during the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,129,483 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,869,170,000 after buying an additional 7,856,576 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 40.1% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,520,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,563,376,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,751 shares during the last quarter. Coatue Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $685,684,000. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 42.6% in the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 10,978,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,247,838,000 after acquiring an additional 3,280,730 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price 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. Argus increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. B. Riley Financial increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $530.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Wolfe Research increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Twenty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $465.14.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $432.16 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $387.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $326.06. The firm has a market cap of $342.97 billion, a PE ratio of 40.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.66. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $153.47 and a 1 year high of $448.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.80.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 29.31% and a return on equity of 36.97%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.39 EPS. 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 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $0.53 dividend. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Judy Bruner sold 3,969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.02, for a total transaction of $1,496,392.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 28,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,778,624.78. This trade represents a 12.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,003 shares of company stock valued at $2,678,139. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.