Green Alpha Advisors LLC Sells 365 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Green Alpha Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 11,606 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 365 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for about 1.8% of Green Alpha Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Green Alpha Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,345,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 56.0% in the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT traded down $1.84 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $200.13. 3,708,152 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,061,492. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $165.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.00, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $194.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $209.98. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. B. Riley lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $228.90.

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.