Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Shares Down 1.7% Following Analyst Downgrade

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) shares fell 1.7% during trading on Thursday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $220.00 to $210.00. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Applied Materials traded as low as $180.11 and last traded at $182.76. 1,589,128 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 6,057,618 shares. The stock had previously closed at $185.94.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on AMAT. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Bank of America increased their price target on Applied Materials from $222.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Barclays upgraded Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $225.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday, August 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $232.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total value of $2,325,559.55. Following the sale, the director now owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,639,630.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Prabu G. Raja sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $12,458,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 458,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,223,763.89. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Iannotti sold 9,827 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.65, for a total transaction of $2,325,559.55. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,639,630.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 3,097 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $502,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 4,182 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $678,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,609 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 11,291 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,542 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 20,420 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,309,000 after acquiring an additional 4,129 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Trading Down 1.7 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $151.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $206.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $210.95. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.