Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Bought by First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,146 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,937 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $9,019,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,039,667 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $12,528,961,000 after buying an additional 487,358 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,079,451 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,260,178,000 after acquiring an additional 253,078 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Applied Materials by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,663,780,000 after buying an additional 1,602,645 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,588,422,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 8,338,520 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,356,094,000 after buying an additional 587,036 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AMAT. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.29.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $166.74 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The firm has a market cap of $133.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $152.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $163.11.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials 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.