Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. Buys 1,019 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 153,781 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,019 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up 2.2% of Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $25,010,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Cozad Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,667 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $596,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 221.3% during the fourth quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $654,000 after purchasing an additional 2,768 shares in the last quarter. Provident Co of the Employees of the Hebrew University LTD bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,399,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 17,723 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,882,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 target price (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $155.66 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $172.54 and a 200 day moving average of $179.15. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.37 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The firm has a market cap of $126.46 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 24.05%.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board 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.