Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by HB Wealth Management LLC

HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,457 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,480 shares during the quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,327,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its position in Applied Materials by 326.3% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 592.9% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $192.05 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $173.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $190.95. The company has a market cap of $156.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $156.78 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $218.95.

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.