Capital Research Global Investors Boosts Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 381.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 581,589 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 460,708 shares during the quarter. Capital Research Global Investors owned 0.07% of Applied Materials worth $94,584,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Applied Materials stock traded up $1.38 during trading on Friday, hitting $151.55. The stock had a trading volume of 4,802,105 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,662,573. The stock has a market cap of $123.13 billion, a PE ratio of 19.81, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $149.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $169.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. This is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 24.05%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Barclays lowered their price objective 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. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $202.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $208.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 purchase, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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.