Meeder Advisory Services Inc. Sells 612 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lowered its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,804 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 612 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,395,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $37,000. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the third quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 4,560 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA lifted its position in Applied Materials by 0.8% during the third quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA now owns 10,191 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,059,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Planning Directions Inc. lifted its position in Applied Materials by 5.1% during the third quarter. Planning Directions Inc. now owns 2,023 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $409,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glass Wealth Management Co LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 11.6% during the third quarter. Glass Wealth Management Co LLC now owns 14,445 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,919,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $168.47 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $190.88 and its 200 day moving average is $206.87. 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 stock has a market cap of $138.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.57 and a 52-week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.71% and a net margin of 26.41%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on AMAT. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $219.81.

Applied Materials Company 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.