Allworth Financial LP Increases Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,390 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 927 shares during the quarter. Allworth Financial LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 3,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $607,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $173,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,506 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $218,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $372,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.1%

AMAT stock opened at $197.93 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $158.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.08, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.69. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $171.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $164.98. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $248.81.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were 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 directly owned 5,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $946,580. This represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Applied Materials from $158.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup upped their target price on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Redburn Atlantic lowered Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, B. Riley cut their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $203.65.

Applied Materials 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.