Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Receives $191.83 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-six ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $191.83.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $180.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Bank Of America (Bofa) upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,568,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 454,273 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $73,624,000 after purchasing an additional 2,119 shares during the period. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,245,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Cape ANN Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Cape ANN Savings Bank now owns 19,071 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,133,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $208.00 on Thursday. Applied Materials has a one year low of $109.00 and a one year high of $214.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 2.71. The firm has a market cap of $172.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.47, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.59. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $189.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $161.58.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 43.56%. The company had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Applied Materials will post 8.03 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.06%.

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.