Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Purchased by TD Private Client Wealth LLC

TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 24.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,079 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,987 shares during the quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,914,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock traded up $4.21 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $194.99. 8,095,416 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,091,994. The firm has a market capitalization of $156.48 billion, a PE ratio of 23.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.69. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $168.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $164.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.46.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. Applied Materials's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AMAT shares. Mizuho decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday. Bank of America decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Redburn Atlantic cut Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $202.65.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is 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.