Gilbert & Cook Inc. Sells 1,935 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Gilbert & Cook Inc. cut its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 48.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,034 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,935 shares during the quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $411,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Clean Yield Group bought a new position in Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. First PREMIER Bank raised its stake in Applied Materials by 326.3% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 56.0% in the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Down 9.2 %

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $168.88 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $141.94 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a 50 day moving average of $190.88 and a 200-day moving average of $206.78. The firm has a market cap of $139.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.71% and a net margin of 26.41%. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $219.81.

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.