Voya Investment Management LLC Has $104.39 Million Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Voya Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 55.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 641,854 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 791,005 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Applied Materials worth $104,385,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Norges Bank bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,588,422,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $182,962,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1,069.9% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,079,977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $175,637,000 after purchasing an additional 987,660 shares during the period. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $157,426,000. Finally, Flossbach Von Storch SE grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 126.6% during the fourth quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE now owns 1,600,078 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $260,221,000 after acquiring an additional 893,995 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock traded down $0.76 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $150.79. 7,052,198 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,684,756. The business's 50-day moving average is $149.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $168.32. 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 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock 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 reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 24.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $208.86.

About Applied Materials

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.