Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Cantillon Capital Management LLC

Cantillon Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,148,598 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 93,972 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for 3.9% of Cantillon Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Cantillon Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $636,174,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $33,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 56.0% in the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $219.81.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $170.73 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $190.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $206.68. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.57 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.86. The company has a market cap of $140.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.83, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued 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. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.71%. The company 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 firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.58%.

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.