Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by Alpha Cubed Investments LLC

Alpha Cubed Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 206.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,568 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 13,178 shares during the period. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 3,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $607,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $173,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.7% during the first quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,506 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $218,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fourpath Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the first quarter. Fourpath Capital Management LLC now owns 9,566 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,388,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $3.92 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $194.70. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,489,515 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,070,573. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The company has a market capitalization of $156.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.69. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $168.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $164.13.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price target (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday. Finally, B. Riley decreased their price objective 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $202.65.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $946,580. This represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.