Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Trading Down 1.4% - Time to Sell?

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 1.4% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $170.70 and last traded at $172.47. Approximately 1,025,962 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 6,944,743 shares. The stock had previously closed at $175.00.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AMAT shares. B. Riley cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Applied Materials from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $162.00 to $158.00 in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a "mixed" rating on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.29.

Applied Materials Trading Down 2.5%

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $156.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $163.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $136.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. Applied Materials's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.38%.

Applied Materials announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to reacquire up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 972.2% in the 1st quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 435.0% in the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 214 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5,325.0% in the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. 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.