Systematic Alpha Investments LLC Has $51.65 Million Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Systematic Alpha Investments LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 317,598 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,530 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up 1.9% of Systematic Alpha Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $51,651,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 8.3 %

AMAT stock opened at $135.51 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $131.99 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $163.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $175.79.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program 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 repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 24.05%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $214.67.

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.