Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC Grows Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 56.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,821 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 5,729 shares during the period. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,296,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, B. Riley cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $199.29.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT stock opened at $166.74 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $133.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month 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 stock's 50 day simple moving average is $152.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $163.24.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released 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 business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in 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 often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This 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 currently owned by insiders.

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.

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