Zevin Asset Management LLC Sells 154 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Zevin Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,086 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 154 shares during the quarter. Zevin Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $665,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AMAT. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 4,244,566 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $857,615,000 after buying an additional 108,827 shares during the period. Haverford Trust Co increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 26.4% in the 3rd quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 3,348 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $676,000 after buying an additional 699 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 26.4% in the 3rd quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,917 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,223 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,672,000 after purchasing an additional 1,531 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balboa Wealth Partners grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 5,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,079,000 after purchasing an additional 758 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’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 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT opened at $155.66 on Friday. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $172.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $179.36. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $145.37 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $126.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.