Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT Shares Bought by China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.

24 Apr 2026, 05:56 by Amy Steele · The Cerbat Gem

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Free Report) by 7.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,544 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,513 shares during the quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Grandfield & Dodd LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 6.9% during the third quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 269,511 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $55,180,000 after acquiring an additional 17,397 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.9% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,101,772 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $635,057,000 after buying an additional 145,050 shares in the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 21.8% in the third quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 96,712 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,801,000 after buying an additional 17,288 shares in the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 82.2% in the third quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 26,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,512,000 after buying an additional 12,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,531,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AMAT. Citigroup increased their target price on Applied Materials from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Barclays increased their target price on Applied Materials from $360.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. DZ Bank upgraded Applied Materials to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Applied Materials from $340.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.29.

View Our Latest Research Report on Applied Materials

More Applied Materials News

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

Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer publicly called AMAT “a great buy,” highlighting the company alongside other equipment leaders; that endorsement can lift investor sentiment and retail interest. Jim Cramer on Applied Materials
Positive Sentiment: Analysts and podcasters (SemiAnalysis) argue DRAM demand from AI will outstrip capacity, implying elevated memory capex — a direct tailwind for equipment suppliers like AMAT. This narrative supports upside to multi-year equipment orders if memory pricing and fab spending accelerate. ‘DRAM Will Double or Triple From Here’
Positive Sentiment: Applied joined Tesla’s Terafab project, which could lead to equipment supply opportunities if the initiative scales — a potential new revenue channel beyond core foundry/HPC customers. Applied Materials Just Joined the Tesla Terafab Project
Positive Sentiment: Applied and Advantest deepened ties on the EPIC platform to better link fab processes and automated testing — a strategic move that can shorten time-to-market for advanced AI/HPC chips and make AMAT’s equipment more integral to customers’ value chains. Applied Materials Deepens Chip Test Links
Neutral Sentiment: Applied set its fiscal Q2 2026 earnings call for May 14 — a near-term catalyst where management guidance and order commentary could drive stock moves either way. Earnings Date Announcement
Neutral Sentiment: Multiple bullish write-ups and analyst summaries reiterate a favorable long-term thesis (AI + memory capex), but note AMAT’s rich valuation — these pieces support investor interest but also highlight that upside depends on execution and sustained end-market spending. Is Applied Materials a Good Stock To Buy Now?
Negative Sentiment: Micron is pushing U.S. lawmakers for tighter export restrictions on chipmaking tools; new legislation (and pressure on foreign vendors to align) could limit AMAT’s addressable market in China or complicate sales, creating regulatory risk to revenue. Micron Pushes US Congress on Equipment Sales

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock opened at $403.91 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.71 and a 52-week high of $413.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $365.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $299.72. The company has a market capitalization of $320.55 billion, a PE ratio of 41.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.64.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.17. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 37.52% and a net margin of 27.78%.The company had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.38 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Materials has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.440-2.840 EPS. Analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 11.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, Director Judy Bruner sold 2,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $391.71, for a total transaction of $979,275.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,089 shares in the company, valued at $10,219,322.19. The trade was a 8.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 534 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.16, for a total value of $202,471.44. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,753,615. This represents a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 12,003 shares of company stock worth $4,484,189 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Applied Materials

(Free Report)

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.