Intech Investment Management LLC Sells 20,424 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Intech Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 38.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,519 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 20,424 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,674,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. JT Stratford LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 10,890 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,246,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Financial Management Professionals Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5.6% during the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 924 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $191,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 3.3% in the second quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 1,556 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $367,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.3% in the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 4,016 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $948,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AMAT. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. StockNews.com cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $231.05.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $192.16 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $198.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $210.16. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $159.10 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.90 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.39%.

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.