15,595 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Acquired by SVB Wealth LLC

SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 15,595 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,536,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on AMAT. Bank of America reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $158.07 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $153.95 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $175.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $182.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.42 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.92%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.