Physicians Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Free Report) by 24.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,406 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 665 shares during the period. Physicians Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,020,894 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $134,555,000 after acquiring an additional 54,261 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 92.3% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 3,180 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $419,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its position in Applied Materials by 21.7% during the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 8,981 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,184,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at $315,000. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 12.6% in the first quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 2,215 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. 77.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Applied Materials Stock Performance
NASDAQ AMAT opened at $143.97 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.30 and a quick ratio of 1.59. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $71.12 and a 1-year high of $155.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.60. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $144.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $131.41.
Applied Materials Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.89%.
Insider Transactions at Applied Materials
In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.00, for a total transaction of $1,420,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 69,504 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,869,568. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.00, for a total value of $1,420,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 69,504 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,869,568. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Brice Hill sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.04, for a total value of $150,040.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 106,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,907,690.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of brokerages recently commented on AMAT. Berenberg Bank increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 18th. Needham & Company LLC lowered Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Applied Materials from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 19th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.08.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on AMAT
About Applied Materials
Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. It 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.
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