Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Holdings Lowered by Lake Street Advisors Group LLC

Lake Street Advisors Group LLC cut its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 26.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,279 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,255 shares during the quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,509,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 37.2% during the fourth quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 3,156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 856 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its stake in Applied Materials by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 168,794 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $27,451,000 after acquiring an additional 34,316 shares in the last quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 34,599 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,627,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the period. Processus Wealth & Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Processus Wealth & Capital Management LLC now owns 16,953 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,757,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 30.2% during the fourth quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,315 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $168.51 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $136.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53. The company’s fifty day moving average is $175.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $183.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $158.96 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (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 analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors 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 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.92%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of Applied Materials 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 owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on AMAT. 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 report on Friday, January 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target 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. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price 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, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.