Leelyn Smith LLC Trims Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Leelyn Smith LLC decreased its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,377 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 369 shares during the period. Applied Materials accounts for 1.1% of Leelyn Smith LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Leelyn Smith LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Camden National Bank purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at $400,000. Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $3,262,000. Allen Capital Group LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 13.7% during the third quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 1,554 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 5.3% during the third quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth about $643,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.05.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of AMAT opened at $174.88 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $144.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.31, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.57 and a twelve month high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $189.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $205.74.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

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.