Schroder Investment Management Group Has $83.05 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Schroder Investment Management Group lowered its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 507,537 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 41,875 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group owned approximately 0.06% of Applied Materials worth $83,053,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,588,422,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 341.0% in the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,857,155 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $577,288,000 after buying an additional 2,209,218 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 67.8% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,663,133 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $942,187,000 after buying an additional 1,884,153 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $182,962,000. Finally, Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $157,426,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on AMAT. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $214.67.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.8 %

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $145.06 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $143.38 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $167.33 and a 200-day moving average of $176.84.

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, beating 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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials declared that its board 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 purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. 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. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 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.