1,773 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Bought by Center For Asset Management LLC

Center For Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 1,773 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAM Holding AG grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 30.4% during the 1st quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 52,607 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $7,634,000 after acquiring an additional 12,253 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 13.2% during the 1st quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 11,095 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,610,000 after purchasing an additional 1,294 shares in the last quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 60,472 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $8,776,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Dupont Capital Management Corp boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Dupont Capital Management Corp now owns 50,311 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $7,301,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cottage Street Advisors LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 52.5% in the 1st quarter. Cottage Street Advisors LLC now owns 15,303 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,221,000 after acquiring an additional 5,268 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $169.46 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $159.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $163.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $135.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.62, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. B. Riley dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.29.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. The company operates through three segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display and Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment develops, manufactures, and sells various manufacturing equipment that is used to fabricate semiconductor chips or integrated circuits.

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