Ingalls & Snyder LLC Decreases Stock Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Ingalls & Snyder LLC cut its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 26,887 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 203 shares during the quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 592.9% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Barclays reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on 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, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $218.00.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $180.89 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $175.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $184.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $147.01 billion, a PE ratio of 21.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.53. 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 data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 18.58%.

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.