Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Sold by Exchange Capital Management Inc.

Exchange Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,578 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 246 shares during the period. Exchange Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,395,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AMAT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 61.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $194.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.38.

Applied Materials Trading Down 2.0 %

AMAT opened at $168.57 on Tuesday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $158.96 and a one year high of $255.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $175.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $183.74. The stock has a market cap of $137.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.92%.

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.