On July 28, Applied Materials fell 3.85% in pre-market trading, trading at $493.96/share, with turnover of $344.41 million. The decline follows continued fallout from famed investor Michael Burry's publicly disclosed short position against the stock and the broader semiconductor sector.

Burry, known as \"The Big Short,\" has been actively increasing bearish bets against AI and semiconductor stocks, projecting an approximately 30% correction across AI-related chip names including Applied Materials. Since his initial public disclosure, the semiconductor sector has experienced a notable pullback, with Applied Materials shares falling from levels above $558 earlier in the session on July 27 to current pre-market levels below $500.

Notably, the bearish momentum contrasts sharply with recent bullish institutional calls. HSBC raised its price target on Applied Materials from $522 to $683, while Citi and UBS both set targets at $705. The FactSet analyst consensus target stands at $641.61. Jefferies also raised its global wafer fabrication equipment market forecast, projecting $253 billion by 2028 driven by AI and HBM demand. The company is scheduled to report fiscal third-quarter results on August 13, with consensus EPS estimates at $3.36, though short-term bearish sentiment continues to dominate price action.

(The above content is based on publicly available market information, generated by a program or algorithm, and is intended solely as a stock movement alert. It does not constitute investment advice or a basis for trading decisions.)