Outfitter Financial LLC Has $2.54 Million Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Outfitter Financial LLC reduced its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,500 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 620 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises about 2.3% of Outfitter Financial LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Outfitter Financial LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,540,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 16,004 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,603,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,530 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $737,000 after buying an additional 926 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 28,913 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $4,702,000 after buying an additional 3,462 shares during the period. Finally, Evoke Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 2,544 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $414,000 after buying an additional 517 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total transaction of $100,373.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.74.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT traded down $0.51 on Friday, hitting $192.01. 674,997 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,103,109. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $224.09. The company has a market capitalization of $154.09 billion, a PE ratio of 23.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.69. The business’s fifty day moving average is $175.19 and its 200 day moving average is $165.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

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.