Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Increases Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 16.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 116,873 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,581 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $19,007,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in Applied Materials by 0.6% during the third quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 9,143 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,847,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Sargent Investment Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 4.0% during the third quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Biltmore Family Office LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 5.3% during the third quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. waypoint wealth counsel lifted its position in Applied Materials by 3.1% in the third quarter. waypoint wealth counsel now owns 1,853 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, BSW Wealth Partners boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 4,259 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $860,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.4 %

AMAT stock opened at $195.51 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $159.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.71, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.53. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.96 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $173.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $189.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.87.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AMAT. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 price target (down from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $218.71.

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.