Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $221.84.

AMAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. B. Riley boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 76,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,890,103.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Brice Hill sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.34, for a total value of $4,446,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 108,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,091,873.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Teri A. Little sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.62, for a total value of $554,050.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 76,212 shares in the company, valued at $16,890,103.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 89,827 shares of company stock worth $21,382,560. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Old Port Advisors grew its position in Applied Materials by 13.4% during the 1st quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 2,767 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. Lazari Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $226,000. SRN Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 5,889 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,214,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. Keynote Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,122,000. Finally, Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX now owns 24,182 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,024,000 after acquiring an additional 545 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $235.99 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market capitalization of $195.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $129.21 and a 12 month high of $249.42. The business’s 50-day moving average is $218.22 and its 200 day moving average is $195.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.00 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.39%.

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.