R Squared Ltd Makes New Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 410 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $67,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Clean Yield Group purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. First PREMIER Bank lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 326.3% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 162 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Materials in the third quarter valued at $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its position in Applied Materials by 592.9% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 61.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $164.00 price target (down previously from $179.00) on shares of Applied Materials in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Barclays lowered their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $230.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.71.

Applied Materials Price Performance

AMAT opened at $180.35 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $174.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $187.51. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $158.96 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.12 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 18.58%.

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.