Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Given New $195.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $235.00 to $195.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the manufacturing equipment provider's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' target price suggests a potential upside of 41.86% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on AMAT. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $210.29.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ:AMAT traded down $0.73 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $137.46. 6,485,904 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,643,842. The company has a market capitalization of $111.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.61. Applied Materials has a twelve month low of $123.74 and a twelve month high of $255.89. 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's 50 day moving average is $152.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $170.78.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were 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 approximately $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. City Holding Co. acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

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.