Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Purchased by Nilsine Partners LLC

Nilsine Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,272 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares during the quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC's holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,598,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Clean Yield Group acquired a new stake in Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 592.9% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AMAT. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $164.00 price objective (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Thursday, December 5th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. KeyCorp upgraded Applied Materials from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $218.71.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock traded down $1.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $180.35. 5,611,308 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,743,652. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average of $174.37 and a 200-day moving average of $187.51. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $158.96 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 firm earned $2.12 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials's dividend 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.