872,691 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Acquired by Maj Invest Holding A S

Maj Invest Holding A S bought a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 872,691 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $126,642,000. Applied Materials makes up approximately 4.6% of Maj Invest Holding A S's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Maj Invest Holding A S owned about 0.11% of Applied Materials as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $1,588,422,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,647,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,444 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Applied Materials by 18.6% during 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 buying an additional 1,602,645 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 301.6% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,959,997 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $318,754,000 after acquiring an additional 1,471,953 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 10,767.6% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,347,580 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $219,157,000 after acquiring an additional 1,335,180 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.3%

AMAT stock traded down $0.51 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $190.54. 2,027,933 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,414,546. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $152.91 billion, a PE ratio of 23.16, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.69. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $167.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $163.94.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The business's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has approved a share repurchase 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 generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $220.00 price target on Applied Materials and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company restated a "mixed" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $200.73.

Applied Materials 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.