Stonebridge Capital Management Inc. Purchases 400 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Stonebridge Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,380 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for about 1.5% of Stonebridge Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Stonebridge Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,378,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. B. Riley lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total transaction of $554,050.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 76,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,890,103.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.34, for a total transaction of $4,446,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 108,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,091,873.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 76,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,890,103.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 89,827 shares of company stock valued at $21,382,560 over the last ninety days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $0.76 on Thursday, reaching $232.93. 1,155,192 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,756,637. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $129.21 and a 12 month high of $249.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 2.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $215.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $194.47. The firm has a market cap of $192.86 billion, a PE ratio of 27.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The firm had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.39%.

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.