Highland Capital Management LLC Sells 15,074 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Highland Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 37.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 25,472 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 15,074 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,143,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Clean Yield Group bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% during the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 592.9% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $175.28 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $142.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.53. The business’s 50-day moving average is $174.15 and its 200 day moving average is $187.64. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $158.96 and a 1 year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors 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 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on AMAT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $218.71.

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.