Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. Sells 1,990 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 25.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,704 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,990 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,176,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. RFP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 96.6% in the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $222.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on Applied Materials from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.84.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $1,597,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 78,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,767,230.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.34, for a total value of $4,446,800.00. Following the sale, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $1,597,650.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 78,712 shares in the company, valued at $16,767,230.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 89,827 shares of company stock valued at $21,382,560 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT traded up $13.21 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $223.47. 7,509,594 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,728,312. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 2.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $185.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $229.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $204.89.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.39%.

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.