Stevens Capital Management LP Acquires 112 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Stevens Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,317 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. Stevens Capital Management LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $266,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Clean Yield Group bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its position in Applied Materials by 326.3% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC increased its position in 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 buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Down 5.0 %

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $172.03 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.52. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $186.55 and its 200 day moving average is $203.61. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.57 and a 12 month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for 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%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 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 yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com lowered Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $220.76.

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.