Morgan Stanley Increases Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target to $172.00

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its target price increased by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $169.00 to $172.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 6.33% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on AMAT. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $194.84.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $161.76 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $184.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $166.65. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $215.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.70.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.12. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.31% and a net margin of 23.88%. The business had revenue of $7.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.21 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Applied Materials will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares in the company, valued at $946,580. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 972.2% during the 1st quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Maseco LLP purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 435.0% during the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 214 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5,325.0% in the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.