Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX Buys New Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 23,999 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,946,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rheos Capital Works Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Rheos Capital Works Inc. now owns 170,100 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $27,663,000 after acquiring an additional 4,500 shares in the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 51.2% in the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 18,785 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $3,055,000 after purchasing an additional 6,364 shares during the last quarter. Skye Global Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $45,862,000. Cable Hill Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 3,485 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $567,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Value Partners Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 9,896 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,608,000 after purchasing an additional 793 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.1%

AMAT traded down $0.24 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $161.59. 6,702,067 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,908,057. The firm's fifty day moving average is $150.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.13. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $131.28 billion, a PE ratio of 21.12, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 in the prior year, the company earned $2.09 EPS. Applied Materials's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $164.00 to $162.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.