Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Sets New 12-Month High at $225.07

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $225.07 and last traded at $222.42, with a volume of 867953 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $218.15.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Applied Materials from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Applied Materials in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Applied Materials from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.64.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $184.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.58. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $205.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 1.97.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 41.22% and a net margin of 27.57%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.00 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 14.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 76.9% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 96.6% in the first quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.