LaFleur & Godfrey LLC Grows Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

LaFleur & Godfrey LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 17.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,246 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 2,536 shares during the quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,805,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank increased 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 worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on AMAT shares. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $218.95.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT stock traded up $5.57 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $192.05. The stock had a trading volume of 8,101,765 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,337,131. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $156.78 and a 52 week high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $156.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.53. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $173.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $190.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials's payout ratio 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.