Adam Sanders Sells 271 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s 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 directly owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.8 %

AMAT stock opened at $168.51 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.96 and a 1-year high of $255.89. 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 company has a market capitalization of $136.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $175.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $183.46.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.92%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Swedbank AB lifted its position in Applied Materials by 2.6% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 4,244,566 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $857,615,000 after buying an additional 108,827 shares during the last quarter. FCG Investment Co purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at $1,094,000. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,725 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE now owns 51,272 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $10,360,000 after purchasing an additional 7,094 shares during the period. Finally, Welch Group LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 1,505 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.38.

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.