2,409 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Acquired by Grant Private Wealth Management Inc

Grant Private Wealth Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,409 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $392,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective 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 restated an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 target price (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.67.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $147.75 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $164.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.04 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $141.16 and a 52 week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

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.