Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Holdings Lifted by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 596,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 33,686 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp owned about 0.07% of Applied Materials worth $122,926,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth $26,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 76.9% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank Of America (Bofa) boosted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Barclays increased their target price on Applied Materials from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Susquehanna raised their target price on Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a "hold" rating and a $225.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $201.50.

Applied Materials Stock Up 2.0 %

Applied Materials stock traded up $3.92 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $197.91. 3,522,438 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,022,378. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $111.72 and a 1-year high of $214.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $203.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $173.13. The stock has a market cap of $164.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 43.56% and a net margin of 27.03%. The business had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.48 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.03 EPS. The firm's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.06%.

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.

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