Avity Investment Management Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Avity Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 206,853 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,019 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up about 2.6% of Avity Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Avity Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $33,641,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $33,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $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 acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $173.65 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $173.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $191.74. The company has a market capitalization of $141.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 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 52 week low of $149.84 and a 52 week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AMAT. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $218.24.

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.