Raiffeisen Bank International AG Purchases 53,392 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Key Points

• Raiffeisen Bank International AG increased its stake in Applied Materials by 11.8%, acquiring an additional 53,392 shares, bringing its total holdings to 505,332 shares.
• Multiple hedge funds have engaged in transactions involving Applied Materials, with Skye Global Management LP buying a new position valued at $45,862,000 during the fourth quarter.
• Analysts have mixed predictions for the company, with target price adjustments ranging from $169.00 to $220.00, while the consensus rating remains a “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $205.17.

Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 11.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 505,332 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 53,392 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up about 1.2% of Raiffeisen Bank International AG's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Raiffeisen Bank International AG owned 0.06% of Applied Materials worth $73,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Skye Global Management LP bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $45,862,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 9,896 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,608,000 after purchasing an additional 793 shares during the period. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at $230,000. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 71,577 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $11,640,000 after purchasing an additional 9,672 shares during the period. Finally, Humankind Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 28.2% during the fourth quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 1,503 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total transaction of $100,373.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $158.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays set a $170.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $205.17.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $179.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $144.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.70. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $215.70. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $179.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $166.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 quarter last year, the company earned $2.09 EPS. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

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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