Maridea Wealth Management LLC Acquires New Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Maridea Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 1,367 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 61.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $214.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $145.06 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.12 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company’s 50-day moving average is $167.33 and its 200 day moving average is $176.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued 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 return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. Research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

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 issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.27%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.