Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Family Firm Inc.

Family Firm Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,034 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 141 shares during the quarter. Family Firm Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 4,244,566 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $857,615,000 after acquiring an additional 108,827 shares during the period. Haverford Trust Co increased its stake in Applied Materials by 26.4% during the 3rd quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 3,348 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $676,000 after buying an additional 699 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 26.4% during the 3rd quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,917 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $387,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,223 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,672,000 after buying an additional 1,531 shares during the period. Finally, Balboa Wealth Partners increased its stake in Applied Materials by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 5,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,079,000 after buying an additional 758 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $155.66 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $145.37 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $172.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $179.36. The stock has a market cap of $126.46 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. As a group, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 24.05%.

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