Caxton Associates LP Raises Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Caxton Associates LP increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1,152.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 130,412 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 120,000 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up 1.1% of Caxton Associates LP’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Caxton Associates LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $21,136,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 14.1% in the third quarter. Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC now owns 8,977 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,243,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares in the last quarter. Arjuna Capital boosted its position in Applied Materials by 3.3% during the third quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 14,308 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,981,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its position in Applied Materials by 3.4% during the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 2,524 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 132,907 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $18,401,000 after purchasing an additional 32,830 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ellevest Inc. boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 5,003 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $693,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on AMAT. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $215.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $219.04.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $1.25 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $229.41. The stock had a trading volume of 2,296,304 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,747,187. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $129.21 and a 1 year high of $229.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $209.27 and its 200-day moving average is $187.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $189.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.56.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.57% and a return on equity of 41.22%. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.00 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total value of $1,597,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 78,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,767,230.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.34, for a total transaction of $4,446,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 108,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,091,873.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $1,597,650.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 78,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,767,230.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 30,000 shares of company stock worth $6,598,500. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

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.