Analysts Anticipate Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Will Post Quarterly Sales of $6.35 Billion

Equities research analysts expect Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Rating) to post sales of $6.35 billion for the current fiscal quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research. Seven analysts have issued estimates for Applied Materials’ earnings, with the lowest sales estimate coming in at $6.35 billion and the highest estimate coming in at $6.36 billion. Applied Materials reported sales of $5.58 billion in the same quarter last year, which indicates a positive year over year growth rate of 13.8%. The business is scheduled to report its next earnings report on Monday, January 1st.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Applied Materials will report full-year sales of $26.46 billion for the current financial year, with estimates ranging from $26.34 billion to $26.54 billion. For the next fiscal year, analysts anticipate that the firm will report sales of $29.63 billion, with estimates ranging from $28.57 billion to $30.61 billion. Zacks Investment Research’s sales calculations are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that cover Applied Materials.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.16 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.10% and a return on equity of 55.62%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS.

A number of research firms have issued reports on AMAT. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 12th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $197.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 7th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 10th. Susquehanna Bancshares restated a “hold” rating and issued a $160.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Monday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $178.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 17th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $169.76.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Monolith Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. D Orazio & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 76.1% in the 3rd quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 236 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1,538.5% in the 4th quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.05% of the company’s stock.

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $114.87 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market capitalization of $101.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.40. Applied Materials has a 12-month low of $112.34 and a 12-month high of $167.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $129.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $139.77.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Friday, March 11th that allows the company to repurchase $6.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 5.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 26th will be given a $0.26 dividend. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 25th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 13.35%.

Applied Materials Company Profile (Get Rating)

Applied Materials, Inc provides manufacturing equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor, display, and related industries. It 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.

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