Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by Unigestion Holding SA

Unigestion Holding SA lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 84.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,789 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,838 shares during the quarter. Unigestion Holding SA’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,856,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 51.2% during the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 18,785 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,055,000 after acquiring an additional 6,364 shares during the period. Skye Global Management LP purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,862,000. Cable Hill Partners LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 3,485 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $567,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 9,896 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,608,000 after purchasing an additional 793 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 71,577 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $11,640,000 after buying an additional 9,672 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.8%

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $161.74 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $151.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $163.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $129.80 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on AMAT. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.48.

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.