Sterling Capital Management LLC Reduces Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Sterling Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 21.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,270 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 11,027 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $6,712,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 8.6% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic increased its position in Applied Materials by 38.9% during the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 13,200 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,147,000 after buying an additional 3,700 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 59.1% in the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 45,378 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $7,380,000 after buying an additional 16,851 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $339,000. Finally, Rheos Capital Works Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Rheos Capital Works Inc. now owns 170,100 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $27,663,000 after purchasing an additional 4,500 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Down 4.1 %

Shares of AMAT traded down $6.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $139.42. The company had a trading volume of 2,376,451 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,603,409. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $155.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $171.87.

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

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given 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 1.32%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.05%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $210.29.

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.