Allen Capital Group LLC Sells 185 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Allen Capital Group LLC cut its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 11.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,369 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 185 shares during the period. Allen Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $223,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clean Yield Group bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 326.3% during the third 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 period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 592.9% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 61.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.4 %

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $175.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $142.45 billion, a PE ratio of 20.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.53. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.96 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $174.15 and a 200-day moving average of $187.64. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on AMAT. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $218.71.

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.