Norges Bank Takes Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 9,767,091 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,588,422,000. Norges Bank owned 1.20% of Applied Materials as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,039,667 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $12,528,961,000 after acquiring an additional 487,358 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,808,047 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,841,178,000 after buying an additional 672,548 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,826,373 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,994,968,000 after buying an additional 371,866 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 3.7% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,861,933 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,790,554,000 after buying an additional 318,445 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,655,308 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,082,353,000 after acquiring an additional 84,130 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Barclays decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $150.68 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $169.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $177.34. 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 fifty-two week low of $145.37 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 24.05%.

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.