Merriman Wealth Management LLC Has $339,000 Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Merriman Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,438 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Merriman Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. JT Stratford LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the first quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 10,890 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,246,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 5.6% during the 1st 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 boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 3.3% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 4,016 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $948,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SlateStone Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $192.16 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $129.21 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.09, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $198.35 and its 200 day moving average is $210.18.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly 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. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. B. Riley cut their target price on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $224.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.05.

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.