Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) traded up 1.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $188.19 and last traded at $187.44. 1,028,622 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 6,057,764 shares. The stock had previously closed at $185.34.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $224.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. B. Riley cut their price target on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group cut their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on Applied Materials from $215.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.14.
Check Out Our Latest Report on AMAT
Applied Materials Trading Down 2.0 %
Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.90 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.
Applied Materials Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.39%.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials
Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 89.3% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,988 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,121,000 after purchasing an additional 4,239 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.7% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,338 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $552,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 17.3% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 23,949 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,939,000 after acquiring an additional 3,529 shares in the last quarter. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 16.1% in the third quarter. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE now owns 51,272 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $10,360,000 after acquiring an additional 7,094 shares in the last quarter. Finally, L & S Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at $3,069,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
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.
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