Avity Investment Management Inc. Has $30.79 Million Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Avity Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 2.6% during 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 makes up 2.5% of Avity Investment Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Avity Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $30,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 17,246 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,805,000 after acquiring an additional 2,536 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 16,004 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,603,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 28.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $15,303,000. Finally, Sargent Investment Group LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by 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 shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT traded up $3.05 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $169.79. 6,317,329 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,963,127. The firm has a market capitalization of $136.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $152.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $163.11.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Applied Materials from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $162.00 to $158.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, B. Riley decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. Six investment 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, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.29.

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.