Accurate Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Accurate Wealth Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 38.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,565 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 3,459 shares during the period. Accurate Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $806,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,039,667 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $12,528,961,000 after purchasing an additional 487,358 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,079,451 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $3,260,178,000 after purchasing an additional 253,078 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew 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 worth $1,663,780,000 after buying an additional 1,602,645 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,588,422,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 8,338,520 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,356,094,000 after buying an additional 587,036 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Applied Materials from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price target for the company from $162.00 to $158.00 in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $0.98 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $172.79. The stock had a trading volume of 6,129,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,963,453. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $138.66 billion, a PE ratio of 22.59, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. The firm's fifty day moving average is $153.43 and its 200 day moving average is $163.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.