Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC

Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,259 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 713 shares during the period. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,949,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AMAT. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 3,097 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $502,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 4,182 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $678,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,609 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,573,000. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 34,778 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,637,000 after purchasing an additional 764 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total value of $12,458,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 458,417 shares in the company, valued at $114,223,763.89. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total transaction of $2,325,559.55. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares in the company, valued at $11,639,630.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 458,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT opened at $174.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $144.69 billion, a PE ratio of 20.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.56. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $209.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $211.12. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.90 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 18.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on AMAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Barclays raised Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 5th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.14.

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.