Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 0.2%

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) rose 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $190.96 and last traded at $189.00. Approximately 505,586 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 6,043,685 shares. The stock had previously closed at $188.59.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. B. Riley reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $232.00.

Applied Materials Stock Up 5.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $162.87 billion, a PE ratio of 22.61, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $199.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $210.28.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.39%.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 96.6% during the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.