Palmer Knight Co Has $4.49 Million Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Palmer Knight Co cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 18.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,922 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 7,189 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up 2.2% of Palmer Knight Co's holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Palmer Knight Co's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,487,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% in the 1st 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 during the period. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT traded down $7.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $185.56. 2,672,943 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,094,824. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $224.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $148.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.69. The business's fifty day moving average price is $175.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $166.02.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share. Applied Materials's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AMAT. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $220.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, March 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $204.74.

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 shares were sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total transaction of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly 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 this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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