Winebrenner Capital Management LLC Buys Shares of 1,660 Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Winebrenner Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,660 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $270,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 592.9% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 2.3 %

AMAT stock opened at $171.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $175.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $183.92. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $158.96 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $139.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 20.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on AMAT. Citigroup lifted their target price on Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

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.