Kowal Investment Group LLC Purchases 951 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Kowal Investment Group LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 31.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,990 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 951 shares during the period. Kowal Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $942,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $28,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 96.6% in the 1st 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 during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials 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 on the stock in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of 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, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.05.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $192.16 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $129.21 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.10 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $198.35 and its 200-day moving average is $210.18.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.90 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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