Transcend Capital Advisors LLC Buys 2,198 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 91.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,614 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,198 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $748,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $405,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 6.7% in the third quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,618 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $501,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 1.3% in the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,506 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,039,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Equity Partners bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $738,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $813,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.0 %

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $203.38 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.15 and a 12 month high of $214.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $203.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.98. The stock has a market cap of $168.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.59. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $6.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.48 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 43.56%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.79%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. Bank Of America (Bofa) boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.50.

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.