Bridgeway Capital Management LLC Sells 9,400 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Bridgeway Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 39.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 14,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 9,400 shares during the quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,304,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. City Holding Co. bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho lowered 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $208.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $155.69 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $147.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $165.99. 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 capitalization of $126.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. 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 data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business 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. 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. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.05%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback 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 purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.