Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors Sells 1,090 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 17.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,110 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,090 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for 0.8% of Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors’ portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,206,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Eagle Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $306,000. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 17,176 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,053,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 27.1% in the 2nd quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 310,448 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $73,263,000 after purchasing an additional 66,184 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,084,186 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,199,817,000 after purchasing an additional 81,151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ground Swell Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $459,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays raised Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $165.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $223.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $233.14.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $185.94 on Thursday. 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 $153.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $206.36 and a 200-day moving average of $210.95.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Materials

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total transaction of $2,325,559.55. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,639,630.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Applied Materials news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now owns 49,185 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,639,630.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 458,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials 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.