Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) to Buyback $10.00 billion in Shares

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th, RTT News reports. The company plans to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.4 %

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $149.06 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $173.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $179.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $121.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.62. Applied Materials has a twelve month low of $145.37 and a twelve month high of $255.89.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 20.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 29th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.