Braun Bostich & Associates Inc. Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Braun Bostich & Associates Inc. decreased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 5.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,785 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 112 shares during the period. Braun Bostich & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $259,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 51.2% in the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 18,785 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,055,000 after acquiring an additional 6,364 shares during the last quarter. Skye Global Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $45,862,000. Cable Hill Partners LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 3,485 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $567,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $230,000. Finally, Value Partners Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 9,896 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,608,000 after purchasing an additional 793 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $172.79 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $154.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $163.21. The stock has a market cap of $138.66 billion, a PE ratio of 22.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback 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 purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This trade 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 company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. B. Riley lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a “mixed” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.29.

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.