Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Sfmg LLC

Sfmg LLC decreased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 52,443 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 2,524 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises about 0.7% of Sfmg LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Sfmg LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $8,529,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 341.0% in the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,857,155 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $577,288,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209,218 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 67.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,663,133 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $942,187,000 after buying an additional 1,884,153 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $182,962,000. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $157,426,000. Finally, Flossbach Von Storch SE increased its stake 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 valued at $260,221,000 after purchasing an additional 893,995 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.9 %

NASDAQ AMAT traded down $2.96 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $150.68. 4,850,337 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,896,060. 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $169.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.53. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $145.37 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The firm has a market cap of $122.42 billion, a PE ratio of 19.70, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.22%. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.05%.

Applied Materials announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.