Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Romano Brothers AND Company

Romano Brothers AND Company decreased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,000 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 110 shares during the quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,475,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of AMAT traded up $3.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $235.99. The stock had a trading volume of 6,387,433 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,592,667. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $249.42. The firm has a market cap of $195.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.56. The business’s fifty day moving average is $218.22 and its 200 day moving average is $195.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 1.97.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.54 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total value 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Applied Materials news, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.34, for a total value of $4,446,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 108,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,091,873.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the business’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 in the company, valued at $16,767,230.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 89,827 shares of company stock valued at $21,382,560 over the last 90 days. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Barclays upgraded shares of Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. B. Riley increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $240.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $221.84.

About Applied Materials

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.