Catalina Capital Group LLC Reduces Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Catalina Capital Group LLC lessened its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,534 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 178 shares during the period. Catalina Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $412,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of AMAT. Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Willis Investment Counsel boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 148,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $24,119,000 after acquiring an additional 920 shares during the last quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. increased its position in Applied Materials by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 6,998 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management raised its stake in Applied Materials by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management now owns 1,289 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,982 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $973,000 after purchasing an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $218.71.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $178.80 on Tuesday. 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 50-day simple moving average of $174.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $186.41. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $158.96 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $145.31 billion, a PE ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.12 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

About Applied Materials

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.