Stifel Financial Corp Has $134.96 Million Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 829,786 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 58,809 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned 0.10% of Applied Materials worth $134,964,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in 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 grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 3,700 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 59.1% in the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 45,378 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $7,380,000 after acquiring an additional 16,851 shares during the period. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $339,000. Finally, Rheos Capital Works Inc. boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 2.7% during the 4th 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 currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.9 %

Applied Materials stock traded up $1.38 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $151.55. 4,804,419 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,662,581. The company has a market cap of $123.13 billion, a PE ratio of 19.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company's fifty day moving average price is $149.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96.

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, beating 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.05%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Needham & Company LLC dropped 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 note on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.