Susquehanna Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Price

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price target decreased by Susquehanna from $190.00 to $170.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. Susquehanna currently has a neutral rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on AMAT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. B. Riley dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Dbs Bank cut shares of Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $227.24.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.8 %

AMAT stock opened at $186.00 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $153.34 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $141.94 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $190.88 and its 200 day moving average is $207.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The company had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.90 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 8.51 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.98%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 17.3% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 23,949 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,939,000 after acquiring an additional 3,529 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 51.0% in the 1st quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 199,426 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $41,128,000 after acquiring an additional 67,398 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,382 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $697,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 90.8% in the 1st quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,612,587 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $332,564,000 after acquiring an additional 767,223 shares during the period. Finally, Rogco LP grew its stake in Applied Materials by 12.4% in the 1st quarter. Rogco LP now owns 3,471 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $716,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.