Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Increases Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 168,167 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,061 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $27,349,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Sargent Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 5.3% in the third quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Field & Main Bank lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 6,998 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,388 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,202,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $155.68 on Monday. 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 stock has a market cap of $126.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $173.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $180.81. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $149.55 and a 52 week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released 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 return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the 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 sale, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays cut their target price on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

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.