Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $221.48.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. B. Riley decreased their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Dbs Bank cut shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter worth $773,611,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 341.0% during the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,857,155 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $577,288,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209,218 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of 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 worth $942,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,153 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake 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 valued at $1,327,707,000 after buying an additional 1,509,439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted 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 last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of AMAT opened at $174.71 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $188.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $204.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials has a 12-month low of $144.57 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

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.