1,297 Shares in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Acquired by Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC

Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,297 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $210,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 76.9% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 333.8% during the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 295 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on AMAT. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. B. Riley upped their target price on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.50.

Applied Materials Trading Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $189.77 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $157.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.59. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $202.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.82. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $109.15 and a 1 year high of $214.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.91.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.06%.

About Applied Materials

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.