Impax Asset Management Group plc Reduces Stock Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Impax Asset Management Group plc cut its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,551,103 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 21,647 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials accounts for 2.0% of Impax Asset Management Group plc’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned 0.31% of Applied Materials worth $514,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AMAT. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Clean Yield Group purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 326.3% during the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Dbs Bank lowered Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $224.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $229.14.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Applied Materials stock traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $183.46. The stock had a trading volume of 989,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,063,466. The company has a 50-day moving average of $191.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $207.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.21 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $151.24 billion, a PE ratio of 20.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.99% and a net margin of 27.74%. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.90 earnings per share. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is presently 17.98%.

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.