Wedbush Securities Inc. Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Wedbush Securities Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,122 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 190 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,484,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. City Holding Co. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $126.95 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $162.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $175.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.94 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $103.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $214.67.

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.