Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC

FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 14.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 14,079 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises approximately 2.4% of FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $13,346,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Field & Main Bank boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Bank of New Hampshire lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,998 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,138,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,388 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,601 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,375,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Mezzasalma Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC now owns 2,060 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $1.00 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $143.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,499,746 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,603,673. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $156.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $172.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The company has a market capitalization of $116.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 24.05%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on AMAT. Mizuho lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $213.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was acquired 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 owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.