Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday after Bank of America lowered their price target on the stock from $205.00 to $190.00. The stock had previously closed at $145.45, but opened at $137.82. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the stock. Applied Materials shares last traded at $140.92, with a volume of 1,161,760 shares.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $202.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $210.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Materials 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 approximately $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $155.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $171.87. The company has a market cap of $114.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 24.05%.

Applied Materials declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.