jvl associates llc Buys 57 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

jvl associates llc increased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,362 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. jvl associates llc’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $275,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter worth $28,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 96.6% during the first quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $228.90.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.2 %

NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $2.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $201.97. 4,130,989 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,073,735. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $167.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.94, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $194.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $209.88. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $129.21 and a 52 week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.90 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.39%.

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.