Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Acquired by Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC

Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,448 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Clean Yield Group acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank grew its position in Applied Materials by 326.3% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $228.19.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock traded down $0.90 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $187.66. 955,605 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,033,358. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The company’s 50 day moving average is $190.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.42. The company has a market cap of $154.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $141.94 and a 1 year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.90 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.51 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.98%.

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.