Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. Takes $333,000 Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 2,045 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $333,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.6% in the third quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 9,143 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,847,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Field & Main Bank lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 3,170 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BSW Wealth Partners grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% during the third quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 4,259 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $860,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.5 %

Applied Materials stock opened at $180.00 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $175.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $185.32. The company has a market cap of $146.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.96 and a 1-year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.12 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AMAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.71.

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.