Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Invests $74.97 Million in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 461,000 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $74,972,000. Applied Materials accounts for 0.8% of Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. owned about 0.06% of Applied Materials at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. H&H Retirement Design & Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $338,000. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 31,787 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $5,169,000 after acquiring an additional 2,190 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,946,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $108,000. Finally, Perennial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,439,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value 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 $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the company'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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of AMAT stock traded down $2.11 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $159.48. 6,842,548 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,907,793. The stock's 50 day moving average is $150.55 and its 200-day moving average is $164.12. The company has a market cap of $129.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. 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. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.48.

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.