Opes Wealth Management LLC Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Opes Wealth Management LLC trimmed its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,497 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 108 shares during the quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $406,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AMAT. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 592.9% during the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Down 8.2 %

AMAT opened at $169.20 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.51 billion, a PE ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $175.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $184.59. 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 12-month low of $158.96 and a 12-month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. As a group, research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.10.

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.