Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Holdings Lifted by Marshall Financial Group LLC

Marshall Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,889 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 970 shares during the quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,452,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Aldebaran Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $211,000. Sycomore Asset Management raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 55.6% in the fourth quarter. Sycomore Asset Management now owns 33,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,437,000 after purchasing an additional 11,825 shares during the period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $7,274,000. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter worth about $1,764,000. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 132.7% during the 4th quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 16,704 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,707,000 after purchasing an additional 9,527 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ AMAT traded up $2.45 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $243.31. 2,768,843 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,211,725. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $221.08 and a 200-day moving average of $197.51. The company has a current ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $129.21 and a one year high of $249.42. The stock has a market cap of $201.45 billion, a PE ratio of 27.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.54 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.00 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total value of $1,597,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 78,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,767,230.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $1,597,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 78,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,767,230.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of the business’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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,091,873.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 89,827 shares of company stock worth $21,382,560 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on AMAT. B. Riley lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $222.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “hold” rating and a $225.00 price objective for the company. Finally, 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 research report on Monday, June 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.84.

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.