Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Position Lowered by Cooper Financial Group

Cooper Financial Group cut its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,700 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 91 shares during the quarter. Cooper Financial Group’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $637,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. RFP Financial Group LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 96.6% during the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total value of $2,325,559.55. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,639,630.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total value of $2,325,559.55. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,639,630.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $1,597,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 78,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,767,230.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 89,827 shares of company stock valued at $21,382,560. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of Applied Materials stock traded up $6.00 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $199.09. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,968,188 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,905,203. The stock has a market cap of $164.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 1.97. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $129.21 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $223.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $208.92.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The firm had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.00 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.00.

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.