Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Has $2.88 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. by 53%, holding 19,870 shares valued at approximately $2.88 million.
• Institutional investors currently own 80.56% of Applied Materials stock, with Runnymede Capital Advisors raising its stake by 972.2% in the last quarter.
• Applied Materials announced a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, payable on September 11th, with an annual yield of 1.0%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 53.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,870 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 22,387 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,884,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $55,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials 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 value of $100,373.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $946,580. This represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of AMAT opened at $179.99 on Friday. 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 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $215.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.44 billion, a PE ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.70. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $179.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $166.91.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid 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 1.0%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Wall Street Zen cut Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. B. Riley lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $205.17.

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.

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