AE Wealth Management LLC Acquires 5,561 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

AE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 64.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,177 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,561 shares during the period. AE Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,346,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 96.6% during 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 last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $192.16 on Monday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $159.10 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $129.21 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $198.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $210.17.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced 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 business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.90 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. B. Riley decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $224.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Barclays raised shares of Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus 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.