Merit Financial Group LLC Has $4.39 Million Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 7.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 30,224 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 2,102 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,386,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AMAT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $2.55 during trading on Friday, reaching $166.74. The company had a trading volume of 5,678,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,965,711. The firm's fifty day moving average is $152.23 and its 200 day moving average is $163.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.74 and a twelve month high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast 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 allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business's 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a "mixed" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Applied Materials from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $162.00 to $158.00 in a research note on Friday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.29.

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.