Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,439 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AMAT. Citigroup increased their target price on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. B. Riley reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.29.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $175.00 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $140.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $155.19 and its 200-day moving average is $163.22. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.