Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Legal Advantage Investments Inc.

Legal Advantage Investments Inc. decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,171 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 549 shares during the quarter. Legal Advantage Investments Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,305,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AMAT. King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 7.6% in the second quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 3,931 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $928,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the period. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 64.5% during the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,177 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,346,000 after purchasing an additional 5,561 shares during the last quarter. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at $66,000. DRW Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1,432.0% during the second quarter. DRW Securities LLC now owns 5,168 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,219,000 after purchasing an additional 5,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Certified Advisory Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at $221,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock opened at $192.05 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $190.58. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $156.78 and a one year high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $156.27 billion, a PE ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.12 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on AMAT. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.95.

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.