Clearstead Trust LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Clearstead Trust LLC lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,127 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 74 shares during the quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Skye Global Management LP purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $45,862,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 9,896 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,608,000 after buying an additional 793 shares during the period. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at $230,000. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 71,577 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $11,640,000 after buying an additional 9,672 shares during the period. Finally, Humankind Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 28.2% in the fourth quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 1,503 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $244,000 after buying an additional 331 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.0%

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $179.99 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $215.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.46. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $179.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $166.77. The stock has a market cap of $144.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective 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. Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.17.

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.