Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Down 0.2%

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) traded down 0.2% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $215.81 and last traded at $219.47. 1,182,975 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 5,791,534 shares. The stock had previously closed at $219.95.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $142.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. B. Riley upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $215.64.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.1 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $205.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $180.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $182.63 billion, a PE ratio of 25.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.58.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.54 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.00 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.19 EPS 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 is a boost from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AMAT. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $773,611,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth approximately $79,000. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 1st quarter valued at $550,000. Wahed Invest LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 15.4% during the 1st quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 16,476 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $3,398,000 after purchasing an additional 2,202 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter worth about $162,873,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.