Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. Acquires 179 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

by · The Cerbat Gem

Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Free Report) by 1.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,465 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,809,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 17,246 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,805,000 after purchasing an additional 2,536 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 16,004 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,603,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Kovack Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 3,062 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $498,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “mixed” rating on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $200.24.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Applied Materials

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.2%

AMAT opened at $183.21 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $163.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $163.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.46. The firm has a market cap of $147.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.74 and a twelve month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.06% and a return on equity of 40.15%. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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