Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Up 2.1%

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s stock price was up 2.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $222.71 and last traded at $222.57. Approximately 770,966 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 5,761,645 shares. The stock had previously closed at $217.95.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $240.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI started coverage on Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $225.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.64.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.5 %

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $205.99 and a 200-day moving average of $181.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $183.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.58, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.80.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The business had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.00 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,514,814,000. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth about $773,611,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3,940.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,175,766 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $352,626,000 after purchasing an additional 2,121,912 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 126.4% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,254,952 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $464,974,000 after purchasing an additional 1,259,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 123.5% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,976,914 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $407,699,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092,429 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.