IFG Advisory LLC Makes New Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

IFG Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 3,771 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $890,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,764,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 89.3% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,988 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,121,000 after buying an additional 4,239 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.4% in the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,350 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $699,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $611,000. Finally, Balentine LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 19,263 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,122,000 after acquiring an additional 3,538 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $197.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $214.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $211.58. The company has a market capitalization of $162.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.67, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.90 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays upgraded shares of Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $223.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.14.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total transaction of $554,050.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 76,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,890,103.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 458,417 shares in the company, valued at $114,223,763.89. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 76,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,890,103.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 62,327 shares of company stock worth $15,338,110 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.