Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by Atomi Financial Group Inc.

Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 16.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,956 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 704 shares during the period. Atomi Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,169,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,514,814,000. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at $773,611,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 3,940.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,175,766 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $352,626,000 after acquiring an additional 2,121,912 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 126.4% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,254,952 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $464,974,000 after purchasing an additional 1,259,111 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 123.5% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,976,914 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $407,699,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092,429 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total transaction of $2,325,559.55. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,639,630.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total value of $12,458,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 458,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total value of $2,325,559.55. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares in the company, valued at $11,639,630.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,827 shares of company stock valued at $16,935,760 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Barclays raised shares of Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $165.00 to $225.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $215.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $233.14.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock traded down $0.46 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $195.77. 5,676,248 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,988,894. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $218.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $211.47. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $162.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.50, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.90 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

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.