Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 12.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 46,236 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 6,312 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,519,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Field & Main Bank grew its stake in Applied Materials by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,998 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,388 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,601 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,375,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Mezzasalma Advisors LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC now owns 2,060 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $214.67.

Applied Materials Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of AMAT opened at $145.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.12 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $117.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $167.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $176.90.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. Equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.05%.

Applied Materials announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding 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 typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Company 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.