Cantillon Capital Management LLC Buys 16,804 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Cantillon Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,165,402 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,804 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for approximately 3.1% of Cantillon Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Cantillon Capital Management LLC owned 0.39% of Applied Materials worth $514,789,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $37,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 61.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of AMAT opened at $158.07 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $128.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.66, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $153.95 and a one year high of $255.89. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $175.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.90.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 20.92%.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Barclays decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.38.

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.