Cetera Investment Advisers Raises Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.7% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 253,043 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,222 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Applied Materials were worth $36,722,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 972.2% during the 1st quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $185.69 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.74 and a 1 year high of $215.70. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $177.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $166.52. The firm has a market cap of $149.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.69.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly 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 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly 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 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, July 7th. B. Riley lowered their target price 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. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.74.

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.