Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. Sells 780 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 22.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,705 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 780 shares during the quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC lifted its position 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 buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $169.20 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51. The company has a 50-day moving average of $175.36 and a 200-day moving average of $184.31. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $158.96 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $137.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.53.

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

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 target price (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $216.10.

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.