Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target Cut to $179.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $185.00 to $179.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price indicates a potential downside of 3.76% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $223.86.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.8 %

Applied Materials stock opened at $186.00 on Friday. Applied Materials has a fifty-two week low of $141.94 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.34 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.56. The company’s 50-day moving average is $190.88 and its 200-day moving average is $207.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The company had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.90 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 8.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter worth $773,611,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 29.8% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,327,707,000 after acquiring an additional 1,509,439 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in Applied Materials by 126.4% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,254,952 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $464,974,000 after acquiring an additional 1,259,111 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 262.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,390,501 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $280,951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006,937 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alkeon Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 87.7% during the 3rd quarter. Alkeon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,877,133 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $379,275,000 after acquiring an additional 877,133 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Applied Materials

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.