Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE Takes Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE purchased a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 50,201 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $7,285,000. Applied Materials makes up approximately 1.4% of Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Belpointe Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 3,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 1,862 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $173,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 3,062 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $498,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on AMAT. Wall Street Zen upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 12th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a "mixed" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.29.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $4.41 on Friday, hitting $170.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,292,961 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,974,274. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $136.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. The stock's 50-day moving average is $155.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $163.22. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The company's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. 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.