Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Price Down 2.9%

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) traded down 2.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $202.86 and last traded at $203.31. 840,250 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 6,123,910 shares. The stock had previously closed at $209.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective for the company. B. Riley increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $220.00 to $260.00 in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.50.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 2.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $202.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.24. The company has a market capitalization of $161.46 billion, a PE ratio of 22.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.59.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.48 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 27.03%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 15.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 76.9% in the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by 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.