Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Purchased by Journey Strategic Wealth LLC

Journey Strategic Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 71.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,270 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,111 shares during the quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,781,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AMAT. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 price target (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays cut their price target on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $158.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $204.74.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $1.11 on Thursday, reaching $188.12. The stock had a trading volume of 4,805,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,180,138. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $215.70. The company has a 50-day moving average of $177.19 and a 200 day moving average of $166.54. The stock has a market cap of $150.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.69.

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, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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 given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 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.