YHB Investment Advisors Inc. Has $789,000 Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

YHB Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 26.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 4,850 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,003 shares during the period. YHB Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $789,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AMAT. Clean Yield Group acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its position in Applied Materials by 326.3% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 592.9% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of AMAT opened at $172.85 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $140.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.08, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.53. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $158.96 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $174.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $188.14.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.12 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 price objective (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $218.71.

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.