United Services Automobile Association Trims Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

United Services Automobile Association lessened its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 20.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,083 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 4,810 shares during the quarter. United Services Automobile Association’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,856,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 56.0% in the 2nd quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. B. Riley reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 target price (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $220.29.

Applied Materials Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $173.02 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $142.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.52. 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 1 year low of $144.57 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $186.55 and a 200 day moving average of $203.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly 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. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.12 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.