Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading Down 1.4% on Analyst Downgrade

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s stock price was down 1.4% on Monday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $240.00 to $217.00. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the stock. Applied Materials traded as low as $183.14 and last traded at $185.75. Approximately 1,382,557 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 6,059,322 shares. The stock had previously closed at $188.47.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of 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 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, B. Riley decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.86.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total value of $2,325,559.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,639,630.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter worth $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 56.0% during the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter worth $35,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $154.64 billion, a PE ratio of 21.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $202.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $210.70. 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.