Meeder Asset Management Inc. Has $7.23 Million Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 20.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 35,800 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 9,439 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $7,233,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Caprock Group LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 1.0% during the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 19,290 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $3,898,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth about $37,000. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 2.1% during the third quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 4,560 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $921,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA raised its stake in Applied Materials by 0.8% during the third quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA now owns 10,191 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $2,059,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Planning Directions Inc. raised its stake in Applied Materials by 5.1% during the third quarter. Planning Directions Inc. now owns 2,023 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $409,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Applied Materials stock traded down $1.42 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $169.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,649,215 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,158,373. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $139.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.57 and a twelve month high of $255.89. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $190.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $206.44.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm 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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company 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 yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is 18.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Applied Materials from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. B. Riley cut their price target on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $219.81.

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.