Callan Capital LLC Buys Shares of 1,525 Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Callan Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 1,525 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. B. Riley lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $202.65.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of AMAT opened at $194.99 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $156.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.72, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $169.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $164.35.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.09 EPS. 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is 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.