Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Manning & Napier Group LLC

Manning & Napier Group LLC cut its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 270,284 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 23,943 shares during the quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $43,805,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.6% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,020,894 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $134,555,000 after purchasing an additional 54,261 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 92.3% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 3,180 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $419,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 21.7% during the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 8,981 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,184,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth about $315,000. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 12.6% during the first quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 2,215 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 0.9 %

NASDAQ AMAT traded down $1.77 during trading on Friday, hitting $206.23. 5,750,078 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,837,045. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.00 and a 12 month high of $214.91. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $191.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $162.21. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $171.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.26, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.59.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.48 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 27.03%. The business’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.03 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 15.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Bank Of America (Bofa) increased their target price on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group increased their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Applied Materials from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $191.83.

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.