Impax Asset Management Group plc Reduces Position in Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

Impax Asset Management Group plc lowered its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 16.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,339,357 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 256,289 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for 1.4% of Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $244,397,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 155.8% during the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 13,098 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,901,000 after purchasing an additional 7,978 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Applied Materials by 2.2% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 794,431 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $115,288,000 after buying an additional 16,839 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 30.7% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 6,108 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $886,000 after buying an additional 1,436 shares during the period. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 35.8% in the 1st quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 5,723 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $831,000 after buying an additional 1,509 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $230.73 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.74 and a twelve month high of $242.50. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $209.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $186.02. The firm has a market cap of $183.81 billion, a PE ratio of 27.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.84.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.96% and a net margin of 23.88%.The company had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Applied Materials from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.31.

Applied Materials 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.