Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lowered its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Free Report) by 0.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 82,647 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 250 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $16,699,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $28,000. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at $33,000. First PREMIER Bank raised its stake in Applied Materials by 326.3% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 56.0% in the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $219.81.
Applied Materials Price Performance
Applied Materials stock opened at $170.49 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $144.57 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $190.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $206.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $140.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87.
Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion during 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.12 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.
Applied Materials Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.
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.
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