Integris Wealth Management LLC Buys 198 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Integris Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 16.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,436 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its position in Applied Materials by 326.3% during 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 period. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 592.9% during 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AMAT. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 price objective (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $218.71.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $181.72 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $174.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $187.55. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $158.96 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $147.68 billion, a PE ratio of 21.11, a PEG ratio of 1.79 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted 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 business 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 firm’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.12 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 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.