Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Holdings Reduced by Horizon Investment Services LLC

Horizon Investment Services LLC lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,949 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,267 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for about 2.5% of Horizon Investment Services LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Horizon Investment Services LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,847,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 61.4% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock opened at $145.06 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.12 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $117.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The business has a fifty day moving average of $167.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.91.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.46 dividend. 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 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $214.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.