Cottonwood Capital Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Cottonwood Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 11.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,476 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 195 shares during the period. Cottonwood Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $214,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,588,422,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,647,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,444 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,230,464 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,663,780,000 after buying an additional 1,602,645 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 301.6% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,959,997 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $318,754,000 after acquiring an additional 1,471,953 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. B. Riley dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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 transaction of $65,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $183.07 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $161.25 and a 200-day moving average of $163.14. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.74 and a 52-week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.