Certuity LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Certuity LLC cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,121 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 305 shares during the period. Certuity LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 29.8% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,327,707,000 after buying an additional 1,509,439 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,077,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $340,895,000 after acquiring an additional 164,085 shares in the last quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp raised its position in Applied Materials by 47.0% during the third quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 67,915 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $13,722,000 after acquiring an additional 21,699 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,139,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $230,158,000 after purchasing an additional 15,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 62.6% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,698,282 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $343,138,000 after purchasing an additional 653,739 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT stock opened at $180.89 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $147.01 billion, a PE ratio of 21.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $175.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $184.87. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $158.96 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued 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. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Barclays cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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, January 13th. Mizuho 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, January 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $218.00.

Applied Materials 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.