United Asset Strategies Inc. Sells 2,148 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. $AMAT

United Asset Strategies Inc. cut its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 22.8% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,278 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,148 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,332,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Maseco LLP bought a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth $30,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 435.0% in the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 214 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5,325.0% in the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Disciplina Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 91.5% during the first quarter. Disciplina Capital Management LLC now owns 272 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenline Partners LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $230.73 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.74 and a 52 week high of $242.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $209.71 and its 200 day moving average is $186.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 2.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.50, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.84.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.21 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 23.88% and a return on equity of 40.96%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.12 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Applied Materials from $200.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $175.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $212.31.

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.