Wilson & Boucher Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Wilson & Boucher Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 31.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,314 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises about 1.1% of Wilson & Boucher Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Wilson & Boucher Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,347,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Mechanics Financial Corp grew its position in Applied Materials by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Mechanics Financial Corp now owns 3,957 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $641,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,496 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $729,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Kaizen Financial Strategies lifted its position in Applied Materials by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Kaizen Financial Strategies now owns 3,733 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Redwood Financial Network Corp boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 1,721 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,894 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $469,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ AMAT traded up $2.94 on Friday, reaching $220.89. The company had a trading volume of 3,795,707 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,466,837. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 1.97. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $126.13 and a 1 year high of $225.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $206.44 and a 200-day moving average of $181.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $183.54 billion, a PE ratio of 25.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.58.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.57% and a return on equity of 41.22%. The business had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.00 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AMAT. B. Riley lifted their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $222.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.64.

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.