Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 42.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,742 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,519 shares during the quarter. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $846,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clean Yield Group acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank grew its stake in Applied Materials by 326.3% in 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. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 592.9% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $192.87 on Wednesday. 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 1 year low of $158.96 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $173.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $190.22. The firm has a market cap of $156.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.40, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.53.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.12 EPS. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $218.95.

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.