Delta Investment Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Delta Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 99.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,992 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,982 shares during the quarter. Delta Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $974,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $1,588,422,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,663,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,602,645 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 301.6% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,959,997 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $318,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471,953 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 10,767.6% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,347,580 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $219,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335,180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $182,962,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $165.94 on Tuesday. 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 1-year low of $123.74 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $134.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $165.12.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 22.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AMAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Citigroup upped their target price on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “mixed” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday. Mizuho reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.48.

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.