Commerce Bank Has $9.97 Million Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Commerce Bank lessened its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 48,364 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 443 shares during the period. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $9,974,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. AA Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth about $320,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in Applied Materials by 528.6% during the first quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 11,598 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,392,000 after acquiring an additional 9,753 shares during the period. Pictet North America Advisors SA bought a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at about $813,000. Liberty Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 2.0% during the first quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,802 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,496,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the period. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AMAT. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Raymond James upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Barclays upgraded Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $215.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.84.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total value of $2,325,559.55. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,639,630.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total value of $2,325,559.55. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,639,630.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 458,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 89,827 shares of company stock worth $21,382,560. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT stock traded up $3.78 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $255.25. 2,166,351 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,672,078. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $200.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.34 billion, a PE ratio of 28.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $255.62.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.57% and a return on equity of 41.22%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.00 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.39%.

Applied Materials 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.