Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 22.7% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,016,945 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 883,647 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $711,923,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC boosted 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 valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $223.00 to $224.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 16th. B. Riley lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.95.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $188.47 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $204.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $210.80. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $129.21 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $155.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.90 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio 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.