Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by World Investment Advisors

World Investment Advisors increased its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 171.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,733 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 16,888 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,348,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Westpac Banking Corp boosted its position in Applied Materials by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 57,386 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $9,333,000 after acquiring an additional 5,421 shares in the last quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,975 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $511,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. SevenBridge Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. SevenBridge Financial Group LLC now owns 7,403 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,204,000 after purchasing an additional 1,094 shares during the last quarter. Bryce Point Capital LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $503,000. Finally, Private Portfolio Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC now owns 1,458 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $214.67.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT stock traded down $8.56 during trading on Friday, hitting $126.95. 15,559,633 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,363,196. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.94 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $162.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $175.37. The company has a market cap of $103.14 billion, a PE ratio of 16.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, equities analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. This is an increase from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

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.