Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 376,191 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 32.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,518,655 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 376,191 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials makes up 0.9% of Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.18% of Applied Materials worth $306,844,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMAT. WASHINGTON TRUST Co grew its position in Applied Materials by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 1,556 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $367,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $261,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 0.6% during the third quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 9,143 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,847,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Merriman Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% during the second quarter. Merriman Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Sargent Investment Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% in the third quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company's stock.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock traded down $1.16 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $171.86. 7,358,301 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,192,041. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $148.05 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $185.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $202.74. The company has a market capitalization of $141.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. Applied Materials's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.12 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials's payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on AMAT. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. B. Riley decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $220.29.

Applied Materials Company 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.