Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Sells 5,006 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. cut its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,568 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 5,006 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $13,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. one8zero8 LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $212,000. Choate Investment Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 27,337 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,446,000 after purchasing an additional 930 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC now owns 2,132 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 706,729 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $114,935,000 after purchasing an additional 18,760 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M & L Capital Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,106,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.8 %

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $155.66 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.37 and a 12 month high of $255.89. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $126.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $172.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $179.15.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 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%. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.