Nuveen Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 31.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,577,095 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,542,308 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned 0.69% of Applied Materials worth $907,003,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $202.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $208.86.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $173.03 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $140.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.62, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $165.68. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. As a group, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.05%.

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.