1,444 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Bought by Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG acquired a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,444 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 51.2% in the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 18,785 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,055,000 after buying an additional 6,364 shares in the last quarter. Skye Global Management LP purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,862,000. Cable Hill Partners LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 10.2% during the fourth 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. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at about $230,000. Finally, Value Partners Investments Inc. raised its position in Applied Materials by 8.7% during the fourth 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 3.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $176.55 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.74 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $141.68 billion, a PE ratio of 23.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $156.98 and its 200 day moving average is $163.10.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.09 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup lifted 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. Finally, 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.