Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) is Green Alpha Advisors LLC's 8th Largest Position

Green Alpha Advisors LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 95.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,948 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 10,745 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for 3.4% of Green Alpha Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Green Alpha Advisors LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,185,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,039,667 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $12,528,961,000 after acquiring an additional 487,358 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,079,451 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $3,260,178,000 after purchasing an additional 253,078 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings 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 valued at $1,663,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,602,645 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,588,422,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 8,338,520 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,356,094,000 after buying an additional 587,036 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.2%

Applied Materials stock traded up $3.56 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $165.49. 3,494,362 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,933,982. The firm has a market cap of $132.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $163.31. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. 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 share buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $164.00 to $162.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, B. Riley cut their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.48.

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.