Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Holdings Raised by Ecofi Investissements SA

Ecofi Investissements SA boosted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 51,600 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up 4.8% of Ecofi Investissements SA’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Ecofi Investissements SA’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,775,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,077,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $340,895,000 after buying an additional 164,085 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 38.9% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 13,200 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,147,000 after acquiring an additional 3,700 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 59.1% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 45,378 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $7,380,000 after purchasing an additional 16,851 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $339,000. Finally, Rheos Capital Works Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Rheos Capital Works Inc. now owns 170,100 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $27,663,000 after purchasing an additional 4,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $137.46 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $152.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $170.78. The company has a market cap of $111.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.97, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued 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 1.34%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $202.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.29.

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.