Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Plato Investment Management Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 42,211 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 694 shares during the quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $6,890,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AMAT. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $157,426,000. Finally, Flossbach Von Storch SE raised its stake in Applied Materials by 126.6% in the 4th quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE now owns 1,600,078 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $260,221,000 after purchasing an additional 893,995 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $158.07 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $128.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $175.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $182.77. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $153.95 and a 1-year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results 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 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.