Whittier Trust Co. Reduces Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Whittier Trust Co. lowered its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 360,449 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after selling 12,083 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises 1.0% of Whittier Trust Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Whittier Trust Co.'s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $72,828,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 56.0% during the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clean Yield Group purchased a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AMAT. UBS Group cut their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Dbs Bank cut shares of Applied Materials from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $229.14.

Applied Materials Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT traded down $1.90 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $184.46. The company had a trading volume of 4,890,898 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,094,748. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company has a market capitalization of $152.73 billion, a PE ratio of 21.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $195.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $209.11.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.90 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.39%.

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.