Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) is Pacifica Partners Inc.’s 8th Largest Position

Pacifica Partners Inc. trimmed its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 37,310 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 493 shares during the period. Applied Materials makes up approximately 2.6% of Pacifica Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Pacifica Partners Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $6,114,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wallace Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 57.4% during the 4th quarter. Wallace Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,797 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 655 shares during the last quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 12.9% during the fourth quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 614 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 13,982 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,274,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. Greenfield Savings Bank grew its position in Applied Materials by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 11,149 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,813,000 after buying an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Leibman Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Applied Materials by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Leibman Financial Services Inc. now owns 15,285 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,486,000 after buying an additional 251 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $173.65 on Wednesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $149.84 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $173.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $191.74. The firm has a market cap of $141.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.12 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.48 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One investment 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 stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.24.

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.