WoodTrust Financial Corp Acquires 5,669 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

WoodTrust Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 8.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 73,423 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,669 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for 1.5% of WoodTrust Financial Corp's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. WoodTrust Financial Corp's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $10,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% during the 1st quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. B. Riley decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a "mixed" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Applied Materials from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $162.00 to $158.00 in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Edward Jones raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $199.29.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.5%

AMAT stock opened at $171.96 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $159.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $162.88. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $138.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate 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 $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

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

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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