PGGM Investments Sells 10,079 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

PGGM Investments reduced its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 118,803 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 10,079 shares during the period. PGGM Investments’ holdings in Applied Materials were worth $19,254,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AMAT. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 149.4% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 444 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Strategic Blueprint LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 86.3% during the 3rd quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 3,075 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $426,000 after buying an additional 1,424 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $405,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in Applied Materials by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 296,277 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $41,020,000 after buying an additional 3,756 shares during the period. Finally, Jmac Enterprises LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC now owns 2,254 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $312,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $220.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $225.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank Of America (Bofa) lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.50.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $5.88 during trading on Friday, reaching $203.38. 3,933,453 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,553,379. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.15 and a 12 month high of $214.91. The firm has a market cap of $168.99 billion, a PE ratio of 23.93, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.59. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $203.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $171.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 43.56%. The company had revenue of $6.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.48 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 15.06%.

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.