Fairscale Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 270 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $66,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC lifted 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 currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT opened at $192.16 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.09, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $198.35 and a 200 day moving average of $210.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $129.21 and a twelve month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.90 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Barclays raised shares of Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $225.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $224.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Applied Materials from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.05.

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.