Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Wealth Architects LLC

Wealth Architects LLC cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,393 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 81 shares during the period. Wealth Architects LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $686,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JT Stratford LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 10,890 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,246,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.3% during the second quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 1,556 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $367,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% during the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 4,016 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $948,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $261,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP raised its stake in Applied Materials by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 9,143 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,847,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $187.52 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.69 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.86. The company has a market capitalization of $154.59 billion, a PE ratio of 21.07, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.56. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $191.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $207.37.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.90 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 17.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.14.

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.