Avity Investment Management Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Avity Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 212,155 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,302 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for about 2.5% of Avity Investment Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position. Avity Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $30,788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $2.55 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $166.74. 5,678,527 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,952,352. The firm has a market cap of $133.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $151.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.26. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Citigroup raised their target price on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 target price (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.