Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Purchased by Hantz Financial Services Inc.

Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 35.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 18,780 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,939 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,054,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Clean Yield Group purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $33,000. 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 worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 592.9% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on AMAT. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $218.71.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock traded down $1.21 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $179.14. 3,040,815 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,592,869. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $158.96 and a 12-month high of $255.89. 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 stock has a market cap of $145.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.53. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $174.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.41.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 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 the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.12 EPS. Applied Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.