Ring Mountain Capital LLC Buys Shares of 2,377 Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Ring Mountain Capital LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $387,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth $37,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 61.4% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock opened at $152.13 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $175.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.35. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $150.67 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $123.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results 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, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 29th. Bank of America cut their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate 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.