Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV Decreases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV reduced its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 11.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 305,097 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 38,718 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $50,899,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Up 3.0%

AMAT stock opened at $173.03 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $140.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $147.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $165.68. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $208.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.