STF Management LP Lowers Stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

STF Management LP cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,257 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 983 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises about 1.1% of STF Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. STF Management LP’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,477,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Applied Materials by 29.8% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,327,707,000 after purchasing an additional 1,509,439 shares during the last quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 47.0% in the 3rd quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 67,915 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $13,722,000 after buying an additional 21,699 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,139,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $230,158,000 after acquiring an additional 15,183 shares in the last quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc lifted its position in Applied Materials by 252.0% during the third quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 4,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $957,000 after acquiring an additional 3,389 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 26.9% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 52,639 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $10,636,000 after acquiring an additional 11,165 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT opened at $175.34 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $144.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $190.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $205.97. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.57 and a 1 year high of $255.89.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.