Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 3.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 189,414 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,573 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $27,488,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Applied Materials Stock Performance
NASDAQ AMAT traded down $1.25 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $172.84. 4,944,138 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,993,293. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $138.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.67. 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 business's fifty day moving average price is $157.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $163.24.
Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.
Applied Materials Dividend Announcement
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 dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.
Applied Materials declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
AMAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target 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. B. Riley dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.29.
Read Our Latest Analysis on Applied Materials
Insider Activity
In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.
About Applied Materials
(
Free Report)
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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