Laird Norton Wetherby Trust Company LLC Makes New Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Laird Norton Wetherby Trust Company LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 12,235 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,990,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Brookstone Capital Management increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 45,378 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $7,380,000 after purchasing an additional 16,851 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $339,000. Rheos Capital Works Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Rheos Capital Works Inc. now owns 170,100 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $27,663,000 after acquiring an additional 4,500 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its position in Applied Materials by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 178,748 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $29,070,000 after buying an additional 10,081 shares during the period. Finally, Talbot Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Talbot Financial LLC now owns 117,361 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $19,086,000 after acquiring an additional 5,124 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Susquehanna raised their price target on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $202.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $203.38.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 6,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of AMAT stock traded up $0.61 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $174.75. 12,091,396 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,838,544. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.74 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The firm has a market cap of $141.97 billion, a PE ratio of 22.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. The company's 50 day moving average is $148.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.09. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's management 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.