Brokerages Set Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Target Price at $229.14

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $229.14.

Several brokerages recently commented on AMAT. B. Riley reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Dbs Bank lowered shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $224.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $183.38 on Friday. Applied Materials has a 12-month low of $136.67 and a 12-month high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $151.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $207.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 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 quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.90 EPS. Research analysts expect that Applied Materials will post 8.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.98%.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. XML Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 12,795 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,585,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $230,000. Atria Investments Inc lifted its position in Applied Materials by 1.5% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 43,712 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $8,832,000 after buying an additional 635 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 5,836 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,179,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 193,971 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,192,000 after buying an additional 6,513 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Materials

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.