Ballentine Partners LLC Has $2.66 Million Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 22.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 12,895 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,323 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT stock traded down $3.38 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $232.03. The company had a trading volume of 619,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,766,703. The firm has a market cap of $192.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.80. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $129.21 and a 12 month high of $249.42. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $214.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $193.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.54 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.57% and a return on equity of 41.22%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 18.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AMAT. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $221.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 76,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,890,103.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 76,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,890,103.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $1,597,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 78,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,767,230.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 80,000 shares of company stock valued at $19,057,000. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials 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.