Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by Norinchukin Bank The

Norinchukin Bank The lifted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,272 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,717 shares during the period. Norinchukin Bank The’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,363,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advisory Resource Group increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 24,867 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,024,000 after acquiring an additional 4,561 shares during the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.7% in the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,746 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $757,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co increased its stake in Applied Materials by 26.4% in the third quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 47,649 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $9,627,000 after purchasing an additional 9,941 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 70.6% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,845 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 4,073 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sfmg LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 54,967 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $11,106,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $137.46 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $152.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $170.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $111.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.97, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. 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 $123.74 and a 52-week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 24.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $210.29.

Applied Materials 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.