Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Purchased by CCM Investment Advisers LLC

CCM Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 2.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 99,193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,186 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for about 1.8% of CCM Investment Advisers LLC's holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. CCM Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $14,395,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $1,588,422,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,647,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,444 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Applied Materials by 18.6% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew 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 worth $318,754,000 after buying an additional 1,471,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 10,767.6% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,347,580 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $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.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of Applied Materials 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.5%

AMAT stock traded up $5.96 during trading on Monday, hitting $176.55. The company had a trading volume of 6,669,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,437,720. The firm has a market capitalization of $141.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.08, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $163.09. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $255.89. 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 announced 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 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 analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 22.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. 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 report on Monday, May 12th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Edward Jones raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.29.

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.