Renaissance Technologies LLC Takes Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 487,648 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $79,306,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price 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 trade represents a 3.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. 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 report on Friday, January 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $214.67.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $149.73 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $121.65 billion, a PE ratio of 19.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $158.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.51. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

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.