UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Sells 138,476 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd decreased its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 26.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 378,192 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 138,476 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $61,505,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Field & Main Bank increased its position in Applied Materials by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $516,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Bank of New Hampshire grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,998 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,388 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,202,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,601 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,375,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mezzasalma Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC now owns 2,060 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.38.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $150.68 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $169.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.34. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $145.37 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $122.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.05%.

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.