Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Bought by Davis Selected Advisers

Davis Selected Advisers lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 6.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,993,172 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 280,955 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises 4.2% of Davis Selected Advisers' portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Davis Selected Advisers owned 0.61% of Applied Materials worth $724,609,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 16,004 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,603,000 after buying an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $79,306,000. F M Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. F M Investments LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 19,345 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $3,146,000 after purchasing an additional 901 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic cut Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $220.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, 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 note on Friday, May 16th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $204.09.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $183.15 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $215.70. The company has a market cap of $146.98 billion, a PE ratio of 22.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.70. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $181.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $166.81. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.76 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 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 company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

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.

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