Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target Cut to $160.00 by Analysts at Barclays

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price objective reduced by Barclays from $190.00 to $160.00 in a research note published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on AMAT. Edward Jones raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.86.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $138.30 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. Applied Materials has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $150.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.69. The company has a market capitalization of $112.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.33%. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 24.05%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisory Resource Group boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 24,867 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,024,000 after purchasing an additional 4,561 shares in the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 3.7% in the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,746 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $757,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its position in Applied Materials by 26.4% in the third quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 47,649 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $9,627,000 after acquiring an additional 9,941 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 70.6% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,845 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,989,000 after acquiring an additional 4,073 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sfmg LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 0.4% in the third quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 54,967 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $11,106,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.