American International Group Inc. Has $29.79 Million Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

American International Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Rating) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 305,933 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 18,204 shares during the quarter. American International Group Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $29,792,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 55.0% in the 3rd quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 372 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 256.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 759 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 400 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Destiny Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 29,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total value of $3,671,666.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 194,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,228,960.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Applied Materials news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 6,813 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.44, for a total value of $800,118.72. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 98,332 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,548,110.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 29,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total value of $3,671,666.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 194,298 shares in the company, valued at $24,228,960.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $118.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Friday, February 17th. Craig Hallum raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $126.00 to $139.00 in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 19th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $125.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.96.

Applied Materials Stock Up 3.7 %

AMAT traded up $4.87 during trading on Friday, reaching $135.34. 3,384,333 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,230,261. The stock has a market cap of $114.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.60. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $71.12 and a twelve month high of $135.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $117.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 2.26.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 18th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.16. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 52.81% and a net margin of 24.36%. The firm had revenue of $6.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.85 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 7.29 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, March 13th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 25th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 24th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 16.89%.

About Applied Materials

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Applied Materials, Inc provides manufacturing equipment, services and software to the semiconductor, display and related industries. It operates through the following segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display & Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment includes semiconductor capital equipment for etch, rapid thermal processing, deposition, chemical mechanical planarization, metrology and inspection, wafer packaging, and ion implantation.