Capital Performance Advisors LLP Buys Shares of 1,327 Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,327 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 76.9% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 60.0% during the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 320 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.3 %

Applied Materials stock traded up $4.77 during trading on Monday, hitting $208.86. 3,637,820 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,968,247. The business’s 50 day moving average is $204.00 and its 200 day moving average is $174.53. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $112.86 and a 52 week high of $214.91. The company has a market capitalization of $173.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.57, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $6.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.48 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 27.03%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. Analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 15.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank Of America (Bofa) lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.50.

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.