Venturi Wealth Management LLC Buys 1,912 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 14.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,381 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,912 shares during the quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,501,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 80,389 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $13,074,000 after purchasing an additional 10,602 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 41.8% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 373,893 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $60,770,000 after buying an additional 110,307 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,331 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,355,000 after buying an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $240,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP now owns 1,480 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on AMAT shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna increased their target price 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, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $215.38.

Applied Materials Trading Down 2.3 %

AMAT traded down $4.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $171.98. 7,364,128 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,722,227. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $175.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $183.92. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.96 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.92%.

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.