Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Position Increased by Axxcess Wealth Management LLC

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 17,476 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,339 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $2,832,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in Applied Materials by 76.9% in 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 purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. L2 Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Applied Materials by 795.0% during the 3rd quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 29,606 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 26,298 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $180.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, B. Riley raised their target price on Applied Materials from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.50.

Applied Materials Trading Up 3.1 %

Applied Materials stock traded up $6.18 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $204.09. 3,818,510 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,695,384. The firm has a market capitalization of $169.58 billion, a PE ratio of 24.01, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.58. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $111.72 and a twelve month high of $214.91. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $203.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $173.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $6.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.48 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 43.56%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.03 EPS. Research analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This is an increase from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is 15.06%.

Applied Materials 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.