Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC

Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 7.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,072 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 1,971 shares during the period. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,077,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 51.0% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 11,812 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,788,000 after purchasing an additional 3,990 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth approximately $13,521,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 16.7% during the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 15,405 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $3,635,000 after purchasing an additional 2,205 shares in the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 24.9% during the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 3,172 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $749,000 after purchasing an additional 633 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 10.2% during the second quarter. Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC now owns 16,904 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $3,989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $164.00 price target (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $218.71.

Applied Materials Stock Up 3.7 %

AMAT stock opened at $181.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $158.96 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a 50-day moving average of $174.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $187.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.12 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

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.

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