Spirepoint Private Client LLC Sells 2,189 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Spirepoint Private Client LLC decreased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 58.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,567 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,189 shares during the quarter. Spirepoint Private Client LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on AMAT shares. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, March 28th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.24.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $180.18 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $144.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $160.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $163.00. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.46.

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 business had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.