RWA Wealth Partners LLC Acquires 6,937 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

RWA Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 65.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,505 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,937 shares during the period. RWA Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,837,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Monument Capital Management lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 1,850 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $300,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Diversified LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $212,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,831,986 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $458,980,000 after acquiring an additional 351,206 shares in the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 4,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $658,000 after acquiring an additional 591 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $162,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $193.24 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.15 and a 12 month high of $214.91. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $202.94 and its 200-day moving average is $170.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $160.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.59.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 27.03%. The company had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.48 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a $0.40 dividend. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $225.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Applied Materials in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.50.

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.