Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,242 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rockland Trust Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $388,000. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,545 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,829,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,583,000. Accurate Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,024 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,550,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the period. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 7,943 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 29th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.24.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $173.65 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $149.84 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $141.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $173.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $191.74. 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 (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. 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.