Ibex Wealth Advisors Invests $465,000 in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Ibex Wealth Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,858 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $465,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 29.8% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,327,707,000 after buying an additional 1,509,439 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,077,107 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $340,895,000 after purchasing an additional 164,085 shares during the period. WoodTrust Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 47.0% during the 3rd quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 67,915 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $13,722,000 after purchasing an additional 21,699 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,139,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $230,158,000 after buying an additional 15,183 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Applied Materials by 62.6% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,698,282 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $343,138,000 after buying an additional 653,739 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded up $5.63 during trading on Thursday, reaching $180.91. 2,500,991 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,631,224. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $174.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $187.55. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $158.96 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.20 billion, a PE ratio of 21.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.12 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current 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 paid 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 dividend yield of 0.88%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on AMAT. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $164.00 target price (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $218.71.

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.