Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Purchased by Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,331 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,355,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 341.0% in the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,857,155 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $577,288,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209,218 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 67.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,663,133 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $942,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,153 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 29.8% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,327,707,000 after purchasing an additional 1,509,439 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 262.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,390,501 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $280,951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006,937 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alkeon Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 87.7% in the 3rd quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,877,133 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $379,275,000 after purchasing an additional 877,133 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Trading Down 8.2 %

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $169.20 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $158.96 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $137.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $175.36 and a 200-day moving average of $184.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. Equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Susquehanna upped their target price on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $216.10.

About Applied Materials

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.