KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC Has $5.63 Million Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 27,314 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,633,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Heritage Wealth Advisors raised its stake in Applied Materials by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 5,217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $846,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp now owns 3,957 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $641,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,496 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $729,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 15,262 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,474,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Kaizen Financial Strategies increased its position in Applied Materials by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Kaizen Financial Strategies now owns 3,733 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “hold” rating and a $225.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price target on Applied Materials from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.84.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded down $4.22 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $235.77. 4,934,011 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,722,100. The company’s 50 day moving average is $214.36 and its 200 day moving average is $192.02. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $129.21 and a one year high of $249.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 1.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $195.21 billion, a PE ratio of 27.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.39%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 76,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,890,103.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $1,597,650.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 78,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,767,230.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 76,212 shares in the company, valued at $16,890,103.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,000 shares of company stock worth $6,598,500. Insiders own 0.29% 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.