Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Bought by Unison Asset Management LLC

Unison Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,361 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,067 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up about 2.9% of Unison Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. Unison Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $6,134,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter worth $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. PSI Advisors LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 56.0% during the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank raised its stake in Applied Materials by 326.3% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. TD Cowen dropped 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 report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $222.05.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $176.58 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $189.83 and its 200-day moving average is $205.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $145.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $144.57 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.12 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.58%.

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.