1,369 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Acquired by Heritage Trust Co

Heritage Trust Co purchased a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,369 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $223,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Argent Trust Co lifted its position in Applied Materials by 43.9% in the 4th quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 16,956 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,757,000 after buying an additional 5,171 shares during the last quarter. First Foundation Advisors lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 98,650 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $16,043,000 after buying an additional 1,608 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 429,111 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $69,786,000 after acquiring an additional 2,429 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,200 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $683,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 19,345 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,146,000 after acquiring an additional 901 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Up 4.8 %

AMAT opened at $144.94 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89. The stock has a market cap of $117.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $156.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $172.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67.

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 return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

Applied Materials announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $213.14.

Insider Activity

In other 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 directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

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.