Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 11.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,513 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,470 shares during the quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,557,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, B. Riley reduced their target price 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $203.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $197.93. 4,423,891 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,103,532. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.74 and a 1 year high of $255.57. The company has a market cap of $158.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.08, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $171.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $164.77.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. 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 firm posted $2.09 EPS. The business's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

About Applied Materials

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.