1,761 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Acquired by Whelan Financial

Whelan Financial bought a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 1,761 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $286,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $91,659,000. iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $544,000. Vivaldi Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $18,779,000. Twinbeech Capital LP acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $954,000. Finally, Triglav Skladi D.O.O. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $2,115,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective 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 lowered their price objective 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. 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 report on Friday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $164.00 to $162.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.48.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $3.01 during trading on Friday, hitting $157.51. 5,730,689 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,896,893. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 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 company has a market cap of $127.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $150.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $164.60.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released 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. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. Applied Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research 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 given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.