Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Purchases 173,724 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 15.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,314,095 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 173,724 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises 1.4% of Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned about 0.16% of Applied Materials worth $310,113,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 3,097 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $502,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the period. Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 4,182 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $678,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,609 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $369,000. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 110,875 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $17,969,000 after purchasing an additional 5,353 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

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 has a market cap of $159.10 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $198.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $210.18. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89.

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

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 16th. B. Riley cut 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Mizuho cut their price target on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.