Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Has $14.71 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 101,362 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 991 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $14,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,039,667 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $12,528,961,000 after buying an additional 487,358 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,079,451 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,260,178,000 after acquiring an additional 253,078 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,663,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,602,645 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,588,422,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 8,338,520 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,356,094,000 after purchasing an additional 587,036 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AMAT. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 target price (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a “mixed” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $158.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $200.76.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.4%

Applied Materials stock opened at $183.76 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $147.47 billion, a PE ratio of 22.36, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.69. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $164.94 and its 200 day moving average is $163.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

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

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total transaction of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $946,580. This represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 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 insiders.

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.