Primecap Management Co. CA Reduces Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Primecap Management Co. CA lessened its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,596,280 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 146,003 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $422,233,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Swedbank AB grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 108,827 shares during the last quarter. Claro Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 4,324 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $874,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Glass Wealth Management Co LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 11.6% in the 3rd quarter. Glass Wealth Management Co LLC now owns 14,445 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,919,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Planning Directions Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Directions Inc. now owns 2,023 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $409,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GLOBALT Investments LLC GA grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA now owns 10,191 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,059,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 price target (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price target on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was 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 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $155.46 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $126.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.37 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $172.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $178.88.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. Equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.18%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.