Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Decreases Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL trimmed its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 34.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,226 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 9,974 shares during the quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,127,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $1,588,422,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $182,962,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1,069.9% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,079,977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $175,637,000 after purchasing an additional 987,660 shares during the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $157,426,000. Finally, Flossbach Von Storch SE increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 126.6% in the 4th quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE now owns 1,600,078 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $260,221,000 after buying an additional 893,995 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

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

Applied Materials Stock Up 4.2 %

Applied Materials stock traded up $5.87 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $144.17. The stock had a trading volume of 2,693,373 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,628,784. The company has a market cap of $117.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.85, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. 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 business's 50 day moving average price is $150.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.69. 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 results 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AMAT. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $208.86.

Applied Materials 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.