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

Gilbert & Cook Inc. reduced its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 48.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,034 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,935 shares during the period. Gilbert & Cook Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $411,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter worth about $28,000. PSI Advisors LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 326.3% during the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

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

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.71% and a net margin of 26.41%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.90 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. StockNews.com lowered Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. B. Riley decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. 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, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $219.81.

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.