Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Magnetar Financial LLC

Magnetar Financial LLC reduced its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 72.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,079 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 5,529 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $338,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,808,047 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,841,178,000 after purchasing an additional 672,548 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,826,373 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,994,968,000 after acquiring an additional 371,866 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,413,112 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,316,269,000 after acquiring an additional 858,122 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.7% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,861,933 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,790,554,000 after acquiring an additional 318,445 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,655,308 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,082,353,000 after acquiring an additional 84,130 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.38.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $152.12 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.37 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market capitalization of $123.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $170.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

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.