Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) PT Raised to $150.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Rating) had its price objective upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a report released on Friday, The Fly reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price points to a potential upside of 18.16% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $88.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 17th. KGI Securities upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 1st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Craig Hallum increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $126.00 to $139.00 in a research report on Friday, February 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.96.

Applied Materials Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of AMAT opened at $126.95 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $107.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $132.06. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $117.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.31.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 18th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.16. Applied Materials had a net margin of 24.36% and a return on equity of 54.45%. The firm had revenue of $6.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.85 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Applied Materials will post 7.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 13th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 29,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total transaction of $3,671,666.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 194,298 shares in the company, valued at $24,228,960.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 6,813 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.44, for a total value of $800,118.72. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 98,332 shares in the company, valued at $11,548,110.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Omkaram Nalamasu sold 29,444 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total value of $3,671,666.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 194,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,228,960.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1,666.7% in the 1st quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 212 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 53.2% in the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC now owns 337 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 55.0% in the 3rd quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 372 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. 75.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Applied Materials, Inc provides manufacturing equipment, services and software to the semiconductor, display and related industries. It operates through the following segments: Semiconductor Systems, Applied Global Services, and Display & Adjacent Markets. The Semiconductor Systems segment includes semiconductor capital equipment for etch, rapid thermal processing, deposition, chemical mechanical planarization, metrology and inspection, wafer packaging, and ion implantation.