Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) is Mizuho Markets Cayman LP’s 7th Largest Position

Mizuho Markets Cayman LP lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 93.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,550 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up about 3.5% of Mizuho Markets Cayman LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,077,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $340,895,000 after purchasing an additional 164,085 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Applied Materials by 62.6% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,698,282 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $343,138,000 after buying an additional 653,739 shares in the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic raised its stake in Applied Materials by 38.9% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 13,200 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,147,000 after buying an additional 3,700 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 59.1% in the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 45,378 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $7,380,000 after acquiring an additional 16,851 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $339,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 price target (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research 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 has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT opened at $152.12 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $170.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.89. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $145.37 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $123.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (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 earnings per share 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 of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are 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.