Everett Harris & Co. CA Sells 400 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Everett Harris & Co. CA lowered its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 14.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,376 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. CGC Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 76.9% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT stock traded down $1.77 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $206.23. 5,749,205 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,571,782. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $190.35 and a 200 day moving average of $161.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.00 and a 52-week high of $214.91. The company has a market cap of $171.36 billion, a PE ratio of 24.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.59.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 43.56%. The business had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 15.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $180.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Citigroup upped their price target on Applied Materials from $170.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. UBS Group upped their price target on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Applied Materials from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $191.83.

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.