Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stake Trimmed by Signaturefd LLC

Signaturefd LLC cut its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,814 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 579 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,572,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.1 %

Applied Materials stock opened at $155.46 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.37 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $172.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $178.88. The firm has a market cap of $126.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. As a group, analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s 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 repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Edward Jones raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.