FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 1,600 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 96,140 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,600 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up about 3.5% of FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $19,425,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. PSI Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 56.0% in the 2nd quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Clean Yield Group acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $171.86 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $185.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $202.74. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $148.05 and a one year high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.52.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion during 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.45 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on AMAT. B. Riley decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Mizuho dropped their target price 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, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $220.29.

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.