RNC Capital Management LLC Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

RNC Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,854 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 495 shares during the quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,597,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. CGC Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 76.9% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, RVW Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup increased their price target on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. B. Riley increased their price target on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. UBS Group increased their price target on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $191.83.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.6 %

AMAT stock opened at $208.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 2.71. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $109.00 and a one year high of $214.91. The firm has a market cap of $172.83 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.59. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $189.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $161.58.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 43.56%. The company had revenue of $6.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.48 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.03 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.06%.

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.