Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by GLOBALT Investments LLC GA

GLOBALT Investments LLC GA lowered its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,069 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 122 shares during the period. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,638,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth 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 bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, City Holding Co. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the 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 directly owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $155.66 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $172.54 and a 200-day moving average of $179.15. The firm has a market cap of $126.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $145.37 and a twelve 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.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has initiated a share buyback 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

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.