Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Sells 15,257 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lowered its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 158,993 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 15,257 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $32,789,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of AMAT traded up $0.36 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $232.53. The stock had a trading volume of 4,308,848 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,782,273. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 1.97. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $249.42. The business’s fifty day moving average is $216.53 and its 200 day moving average is $194.73. The firm has a market cap of $192.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.57% and a return on equity of 41.22%. The firm had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. B. Riley boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “hold” rating and a $225.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $221.84.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.34, for a total transaction of $4,446,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,356 shares in the company, valued at $24,091,873.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Applied Materials news, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.34, for a total transaction of $4,446,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,356 shares in the company, valued at $24,091,873.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 458,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 89,827 shares of company stock worth $21,382,560 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.29% 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.