CCM Investment Advisers LLC Grows Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

CCM Investment Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 15.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 97,007 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 13,272 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for 1.7% of CCM Investment Advisers LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. CCM Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $15,776,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Clean Yield Group purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its position in Applied Materials by 326.3% during the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 592.9% during the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $6.76 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $170.23. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,219,065 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,400,179. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $148.48 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $138.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.53. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $174.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $193.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $219.43.

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.