Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Down 3.6% - Should You Sell?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 3.6% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $189.75 and last traded at $192.03. Approximately 3,618,296 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 49% from the average daily volume of 7,113,936 shares. The stock had previously closed at $199.29.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Citigroup upped their target price on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $220.00 target price on Applied Materials and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 target price (down previously from $225.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, May 16th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $204.74.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $156.34 billion, a PE ratio of 23.70, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.69. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $174.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $165.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 40.15% and a net margin of 24.06%. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. Applied Materials's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Insider Activity at Applied Materials

In other Applied Materials news, CAO Adam Sanders sold 562 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.60, for a total value of $100,373.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $946,580. This represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Skye Global Management LP bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,862,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 9,896 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $1,608,000 after acquiring an additional 793 shares during the period. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. bought a new position in Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at about $230,000. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 71,577 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $11,640,000 after acquiring an additional 9,672 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,538,743 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $250,246,000 after acquiring an additional 13,667 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company's stock.

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.