Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Buys 27,459 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,023,598 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 27,459 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned approximately 0.13% of Applied Materials worth $166,730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Biltmore Family Office LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Field & Main Bank boosted its position in Applied Materials by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $516,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Bank of New Hampshire grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,998 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,388 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,202,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,601 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,375,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $155.46 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock 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 business’s 50 day moving average price is $172.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.88. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.37 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 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 24.05%.

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

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’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 value of $46,807.12. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.