Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Metis Global Partners LLC

Metis Global Partners LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,930 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,014 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Aldebaran Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $211,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $7,274,000. Sycomore Asset Management lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 55.6% during the 4th quarter. Sycomore Asset Management now owns 33,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $5,437,000 after buying an additional 11,825 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 37,821 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,130,000 after purchasing an additional 6,001 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 132.7% in the 4th quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 16,704 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,707,000 after purchasing an additional 9,527 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AMAT. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $220.00 to $260.00 in a report on Monday, April 8th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.50.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT traded up $6.18 on Friday, reaching $204.09. The stock had a trading volume of 3,818,510 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,695,384. The firm has a market capitalization of $169.58 billion, a PE ratio of 24.01, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $203.89 and a 200 day moving average of $174.01. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $111.72 and a twelve month high of $214.91.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.48 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 27.03%. The company’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 15.06%.

Applied Materials 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.