Simplicity Wealth LLC Acquires New Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Simplicity Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,422 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $351,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 27.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 12,571 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,824,000 after purchasing an additional 2,711 shares during the last quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC now owns 40,801 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $5,921,000 after purchasing an additional 773 shares during the last quarter. Fourpath Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Fourpath Capital Management LLC now owns 9,566 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 38.6% in the 1st quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. now owns 206,289 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $29,937,000 after purchasing an additional 57,495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Regatta Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $208,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of AMAT traded down $4.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $170.59. The stock had a trading volume of 5,292,961 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,989,010. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $156.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.09. The company has a market cap of $136.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.30, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.09 EPS. The company's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.29.

Applied Materials Company Profile

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.