Audent Global Asset Management LLC Sells 7,138 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Audent Global Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 51.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,770 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 7,138 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises approximately 2.3% of Audent Global Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Audent Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the second quarter worth $28,000. Clean Yield Group purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth $33,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its position in Applied Materials by 326.3% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 56.0% during the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. B. Riley reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Cowen cut their price objective 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. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $221.48.

Applied Materials Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $174.71 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.57 and a twelve month high of $255.89. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $188.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $204.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $144.03 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The company’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

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.