Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Facet Wealth Inc.

Facet Wealth Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 304 shares during the quarter. Facet Wealth Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sovereign Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $413,000. one8zero8 LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Choate Investment Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 27,337 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,446,000 after purchasing an additional 930 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC now owns 2,132 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 706,729 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $114,935,000 after acquiring an additional 18,760 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.8 %

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $155.66 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $172.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $179.24. 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 has a market cap of $126.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $145.37 and a twelve month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

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.