Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target Cut to $225.00 by Analysts at Needham & Company LLC

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price objective decreased by Needham & Company LLC from $240.00 to $225.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $219.81.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded down $17.12 during trading on Friday, reaching $168.88. 16,287,484 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,137,177. The company has a 50-day moving average of $190.88 and a 200-day moving average of $206.73. Applied Materials has a 52-week low of $141.94 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $139.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.90 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 8.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 17.98%.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter worth $28,000. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. First PREMIER Bank raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter worth about $35,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.