Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Position Lifted by Freedom Investment Management Inc.

Freedom Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 14.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,702 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,442 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,364,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Clean Yield Group acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 56.0% during the 2nd quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of AMAT opened at $173.20 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $189.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $205.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $142.79 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $222.05.

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.