Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by SGL Investment Advisors Inc.

SGL Investment Advisors Inc. lessened its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 21.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,210 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 869 shares during the period. SGL Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $522,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AMAT. Rockland Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $388,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 5,996 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $975,000 after purchasing an additional 1,134 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $339,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 26.9% in the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 41,628 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,770,000 after purchasing an additional 8,835 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Beech Hill Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. now owns 36,198 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,887,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Bank of America reduced their price target 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. B. Riley dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $203.38.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $174.75 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $141.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.84, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $148.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $165.66.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 24.05%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan 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 repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Applied Materials

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.