Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Sells 100 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,439 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,531,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $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 owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price 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. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.29.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $175.00 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $155.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $163.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $140.44 billion, a PE ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results 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. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.09 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders 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 1.05%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

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.