Freestone Capital Holdings LLC Boosts Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Key Points

• Freestone Capital Holdings LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. by 25.5%, owning 57,863 shares valued at approximately $8.4 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Applied Materials, with target price changes ranging from $170 to $220, resulting in a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $194.84.
• Applied Materials recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, reflecting a 1.1% yield based on the company's stock performance.

Freestone Capital Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 25.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,863 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,754 shares during the period. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $8,397,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Applied Materials by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,663,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,602,645 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at $1,085,600,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 20.7% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 7,189,402 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,043,326,000 after buying an additional 1,235,097 shares during the period. Davis Selected Advisers raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 6.0% in the first quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 4,993,172 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $724,609,000 after buying an additional 280,955 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.5% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,830,923 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $701,064,000 after buying an additional 25,878 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $170.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Citigroup lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $205.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. B. Riley lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $215.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $169.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $194.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total transaction of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at $946,580. This represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $161.76 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $129.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.70. The business's 50-day moving average price is $184.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $166.65. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $215.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.21 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.31% and a net margin of 23.88%. The company's revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.93%.

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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