Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 14.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 68,422 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 11,967 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $9,930,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing 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 $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on AMAT. B. Riley reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a "mixed" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $200.76.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded up $0.85 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $190.86. The stock had a trading volume of 3,568,536 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,077,976. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $153.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.22, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $166.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $163.80.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. Applied Materials's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

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

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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.