Milestone Asset Management LLC Sells 7,194 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Milestone Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 66.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,687 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 7,194 shares during the quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $535,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AMAT. LVW Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 3,361 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $488,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. QV Investors Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth $7,362,000. NBC Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 100,280.0% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 5,019 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $728,000 after acquiring an additional 5,014 shares during the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 55.6% during the 1st quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,263 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $328,000 after acquiring an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Talbot Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Talbot Financial LLC now owns 117,862 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $17,104,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Applied Materials stock traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $161.93. 5,989,064 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,937,039. The company has a 50 day moving average of $151.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $163.32. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $129.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. 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 the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 target price (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. 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. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. B. Riley lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.48.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.