Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-three brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and seventeen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $214.67.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Edward Jones raised shares of Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th.

Applied Materials Trading Down 6.3 %

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $126.95 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.14 billion, a PE ratio of 16.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. Applied Materials has a 1 year low of $123.94 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $162.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $175.37.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. As a group, research analysts expect that Applied Materials will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 24.05%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $319,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth $92,527,000. B&L Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $323,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at about $591,000. Finally, Atom Investors LP grew its position in shares of Applied Materials by 157.6% in the third quarter. Atom Investors LP now owns 14,967 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,024,000 after purchasing an additional 9,156 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.