Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading Up 1.1% – Still a Buy?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) was up 1.1% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $188.19 and last traded at $187.44. Approximately 1,028,622 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 6,057,764 shares. The stock had previously closed at $185.34.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. StockNews.com downgraded Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Dbs Bank lowered shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.14.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.86. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $193.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $208.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $156.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.54.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. JT Stratford LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 10,890 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,246,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. WASHINGTON TRUST Co increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.3% during the second quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 1,556 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% during the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 4,016 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $948,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 4.7% in the second quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,041 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,246,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.