Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target Cut to $210.00 by Analysts at Bank of America

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price objective dropped by stock analysts at Bank of America from $220.00 to $210.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock. Bank of America‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 24.35% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on AMAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. StockNews.com lowered shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $219.81.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $168.88 on Friday. Applied Materials has a fifty-two week low of $141.94 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company’s 50-day moving average is $190.88 and its 200 day moving average is $206.73. The company has a market capitalization of $139.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.86.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share 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 business 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 company earned $1.90 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 8.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at about $773,611,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 341.0% during the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,857,155 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $577,288,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209,218 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 67.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,663,133 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $942,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,153 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 29.8% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,327,707,000 after buying an additional 1,509,439 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 262.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,390,501 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $280,951,000 after buying an additional 1,006,937 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.