Robocap Asset Management Ltd Sells 3,903 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Robocap Asset Management Ltd cut its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 13.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 24,618 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,903 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises approximately 2.7% of Robocap Asset Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Robocap Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $4,004,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 592.9% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of Applied Materials stock opened at $180.00 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $175.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $185.86. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.96 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $146.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.91, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.53.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.89%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AMAT shares. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. KeyCorp raised Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Barclays lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.