iA Global Asset Management Inc. Purchases 3,628 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 101,883 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,628 shares during the quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $16,569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Biltmore Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.3% during the third quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Field & Main Bank raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $516,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,998 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,388 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,601 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,375,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.6 %

AMAT stock opened at $154.46 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The business has a 50-day moving average of $171.16 and a 200-day moving average of $178.41. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.37 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.