3Chopt Investment Partners LLC Invests $817,000 in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

3Chopt Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 5,633 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $817,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,588,422,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,647,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,444 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,663,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,602,645 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 301.6% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,959,997 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $318,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471,953 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 10,767.6% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,347,580 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $219,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335,180 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $200.24.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $183.21. The stock had a trading volume of 14,201,548 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,056,229. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $163.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $163.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.67. 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 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business'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 completion of 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials 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.