5,807 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Bought by Ground Swell Capital LLC

Ground Swell Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,807 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $843,000. Applied Materials accounts for approximately 1.8% of Ground Swell Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AMAT. Eagle Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 16,004 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,603,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Savvy Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 1,506 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Cohen & Steers Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 1,733 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 3,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $607,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $946,580. The trade was a 9.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $190.03 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $183.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $166.69. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.74 and a 12-month high of $215.70. The firm has a market cap of $152.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 22.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 target price (down from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $225.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $195.00 target price on Applied Materials in a research report on Wednesday. Redburn Atlantic downgraded Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 target price (up from $175.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $204.09.

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.