Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 47.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,539,435 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 493,164 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.19% of Applied Materials worth $223,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Skye Global Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,862,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.7% during the 4th 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 period. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth $230,000. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 71,577 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $11,640,000 after purchasing an additional 9,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,538,743 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $250,246,000 after buying an additional 13,667 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $0.40 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $195.39. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,169,668 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,101,513. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The firm has a market cap of $156.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.69. The firm's 50 day moving average is $169.18 and its 200-day moving average is $164.35.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued 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 net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. 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 posted $2.09 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Applied Materials from $158.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $202.65.

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.