Barclays Cuts Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target to $160.00

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its target price reduced by analysts at Barclays from $190.00 to $160.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 15.82% from the company’s current price.

AMAT has been the topic of a number of other reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $208.86.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.9 %

Applied Materials stock traded up $2.60 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $138.15. 1,240,866 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,630,677. Applied Materials has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.24 billion, a PE ratio of 18.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.91.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson bought 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total value of $46,807.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. 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.