Glenview Trust co Boosts Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Glenview Trust co increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 13.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,635 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,737 shares during the period. Glenview Trust co’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,982,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction 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 approximately $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 price objective (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Edward Jones raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.8 %

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $155.66 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $145.37 and a one year high of $255.89. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $172.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $179.15. The firm 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. 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.05%.

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.