Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC Sells 459 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,803 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 459 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises about 2.4% of Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,708,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, City Holding Co. bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 target price (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.38.

Insider Transactions at Applied Materials

In other news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $158.07 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $153.95 and a twelve month high of $255.89. The company’s 50 day moving average is $175.38 and its 200 day moving average is $182.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $128.42 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.01%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 20.92%.

Applied Materials 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.