Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by King Luther Capital Management Corp

King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,931 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $928,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 96.6% in the first quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $192.16 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $159.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a 50 day moving average of $198.35 and a 200 day moving average of $210.17.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued 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. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.05.

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.