Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 38.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,788 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,005 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,765,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 29.8% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,327,707,000 after purchasing an additional 1,509,439 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,077,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $340,895,000 after buying an additional 164,085 shares during the period. WoodTrust Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 47.0% during the 3rd quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 67,915 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $13,722,000 after acquiring an additional 21,699 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,139,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $230,158,000 after acquiring an additional 15,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 62.6% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,698,282 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $343,138,000 after purchasing an additional 653,739 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $164.00 target price (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $215.38.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded up $2.45 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $155.32. 5,858,137 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,864,508. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $174.76 and a 200 day moving average of $181.96. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $149.55 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $126.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.92%.

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.