Occidental Asset Management LLC Has $3.59 Million Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Occidental Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 5.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,085 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares during the quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,592,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Forum Financial Management LP grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.6% during the third quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 9,143 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,847,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Merriman Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Merriman Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Biltmore Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5.3% during the third quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, waypoint wealth counsel boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.1% in the third quarter. waypoint wealth counsel now owns 1,853 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $374,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $186.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $150.20 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $191.65. The stock has a market cap of $151.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.66, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion during 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 company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 price target (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $218.55.

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.