Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Westfield Capital Management Co. LP

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 24.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,748 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,110 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,580,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mechanics Financial Corp increased its position in Applied Materials by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp now owns 3,957 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $641,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,496 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $729,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Kaizen Financial Strategies boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Kaizen Financial Strategies now owns 3,733 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 1,721 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,894 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $469,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $2.94 during trading on Friday, reaching $220.89. 3,795,707 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,466,837. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $206.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $181.94. The firm has a market cap of $183.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.58. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $126.13 and a 1-year high of $225.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 2.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.57% and a return on equity of 41.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.00 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “hold” rating and a $225.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James upped their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.64.

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.