GF Fund Management CO. LTD. Acquires 2,719 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

GF Fund Management CO. LTD. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 159,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 2,719 shares during the quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $23,091,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 3,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $607,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $173,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,506 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $218,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fourpath Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 0.8% in the first quarter. Fourpath Capital Management LLC now owns 9,566 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,388,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of Applied Materials stock traded up $0.85 during trading on Friday, reaching $190.86. 3,568,536 shares of the stock were exchanged, 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 stock's fifty day moving average is $167.47 and its 200 day moving average is $163.94. The firm has a market cap of $153.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.69.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 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 business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. Applied Materials's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect 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 approved a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value 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 trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a "mixed" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. B. Riley reduced 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $200.76.

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.