Angeles Investment Advisors LLC Sells 123 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Angeles Investment Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,375 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 123 shares during the quarter. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $224,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Applied Materials by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,077,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $340,895,000 after purchasing an additional 164,085 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 62.6% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,698,282 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $343,138,000 after buying an additional 653,739 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 38.9% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 13,200 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,147,000 after acquiring an additional 3,700 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its position in Applied Materials by 59.1% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 45,378 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,380,000 after acquiring an additional 16,851 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $339,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $154.95 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.37 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $170.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $177.68. The company has a market cap of $125.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.25, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 24.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AMAT. KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.38.

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.