Intech Investment Management LLC Sells 182,925 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Intech Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 77.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,943 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 182,925 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $10,918,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,827 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $595,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6,226.4% during the 1st quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 244,264 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $50,375,000 after purchasing an additional 240,403 shares during the last quarter. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $2,645,000. Banco Santander S.A. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 0.5% in the first quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 181,569 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $37,445,000 after buying an additional 826 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intermede Investment Partners Ltd increased its position in Applied Materials by 1,201.4% during the first quarter. Intermede Investment Partners Ltd now owns 784,492 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $161,786,000 after acquiring an additional 724,210 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $7.39 on Friday, hitting $210.26. 6,517,081 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,310,802. The firm has a market capitalization of $174.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $229.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $204.00.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.00 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.39%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 458,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 458,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares in the company, valued at $11,639,630.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 89,827 shares of company stock worth $21,382,560 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. B. Riley upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.84.

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.