Burney Co. Boosts Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Burney Co. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 52,884 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,881 shares during the quarter. Burney Co.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,020,894 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $134,555,000 after purchasing an additional 54,261 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 92.3% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 3,180 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $419,000 after acquiring an additional 1,526 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in Applied Materials by 21.7% during the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 8,981 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,184,000 after acquiring an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $315,000. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. boosted its position in Applied Materials by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 2,215 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock traded up $3.38 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $153.12. 1,319,782 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,910,934. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $93.68 and a 1 year high of $155.26. The business has a fifty day moving average of $139.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $138.18. The company has a market capitalization of $128.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 1.59.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 17th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.16. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.27% and a return on equity of 49.29%. The firm had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.94 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 7.9 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, December 14th. Investors of record on Friday, November 24th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 16.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AMAT. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $165.00 to $175.00 in a report on Friday, August 18th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, October 13th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $160.00 target price for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty-four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.59.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other news, CFO Brice Hill sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.04, for a total transaction of $150,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 106,023 shares in the company, valued at $15,907,690.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Applied Materials

Applied Materials, Inc engages in the provision of manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. It 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.