United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund Acquires Shares of 5,800 Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 5,800 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $943,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 341.0% in the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,857,155 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $577,288,000 after acquiring an additional 2,209,218 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 67.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,663,133 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $942,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,153 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $182,962,000. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $157,426,000. Finally, Flossbach Von Storch SE boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 126.6% in the fourth quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE now owns 1,600,078 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $260,221,000 after buying an additional 893,995 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $153.64 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $145.37 and a twelve month high of $255.89. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $169.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $177.53. The company has a market capitalization of $124.82 billion, a PE ratio of 20.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

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 shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective 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. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. 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, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

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.