Kentucky Trust Co Sells 397 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Kentucky Trust Co lowered its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,670 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 397 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Trust Co’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,258,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “mixed” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price 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 directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was 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 owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT stock opened at $172.84 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $158.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $138.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.74 and a twelve month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.09 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.