Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Delta Financial Advisors LLC

Delta Financial Advisors LLC lessened its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 35,626 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,748 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up approximately 2.5% of Delta Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Delta Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,774,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 76.9% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. RVW Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 333.8% during the third quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 295 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Applied Materials from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $220.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.50.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ AMAT traded down $2.31 during trading on Thursday, reaching $197.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,262,633 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,146,269. The stock has a market capitalization of $164.17 billion, a PE ratio of 22.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $202.12 and a 200 day moving average of $169.06. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $109.12 and a one year high of $214.91.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 27.03%. The firm had revenue of $6.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.03 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.06%.

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.