Interchange Capital Partners LLC Acquires 3,970 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Interchange Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 255.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,527 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 3,970 shares during the period. Interchange Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $802,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $1,588,422,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $2,647,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,444 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake 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 in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 301.6% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,959,997 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $318,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its stake in Applied Materials by 10,767.6% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,347,580 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $219,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335,180 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $158.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn cut shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $202.00.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.1%

Applied Materials stock traded down $0.27 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $190.78. 6,576,529 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,087,972. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.69. The business's 50-day moving average price is $167.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $163.94. 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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 given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of Applied Materials 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 sale, the chief accounting officer 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 is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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.