Soltis Investment Advisors LLC Buys 33,664 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Soltis Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 763.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,072 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 33,664 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,693,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. PSI Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 56.0% in the 2nd quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on AMAT shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $220.29.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded up $2.96 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $171.13. 6,654,206 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,203,713. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $148.05 and a one year high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $141.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $184.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $202.37.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

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.