MetLife Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

MetLife Investment Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 250,192 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 6,925 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $50,551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. WASHINGTON TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 1,556 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $367,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% in the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 4,016 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $948,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 9,143 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,847,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.9% in the second quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC now owns 6,090 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,437,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $172.87. 272,007 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,150,112. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $189.26 and its 200-day moving average is $205.23. 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 stock has a market cap of $142.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.57 and a 1-year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.12 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $222.05.

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.