Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Bought by Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC

Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,400 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 419 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for about 2.7% of Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,383,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Field & Main Bank raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,601 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,375,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC now owns 2,060 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 3,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $607,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 1,862 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.48.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $165.73 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $149.84 and its 200 day moving average is $165.12. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $134.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.66, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.09 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its board has approved 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 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.