Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by TCW Group Inc.

TCW Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,507 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 6,072 shares during the quarter. TCW Group Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $6,164,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. First PREMIER Bank boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% during the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 56.0% in the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $2.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $169.08. The stock had a trading volume of 6,093,654 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,203,439. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $202.15. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $148.05 and a twelve month high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.64, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.52.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.12 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho cut their price objective on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Dbs Bank cut shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $220.29.

Applied Materials Company 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.