Foundry Partners LLC Decreases Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Foundry Partners LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 15.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 74,608 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 14,009 shares during the quarter. Foundry Partners LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $15,075,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $170.49 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $140.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.56. 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 one year low of $144.57 and a one year high of $255.89. The business's 50-day moving average price is $190.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $206.19.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for 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%. Applied Materials's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials's payout ratio is 18.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. B. Riley dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their target price on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $219.81.

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.

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