RBA Wealth Management LLC Acquires Shares of 26,666 Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

RBA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 26,666 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,337,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Czech National Bank raised its position in Applied Materials by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 168,667 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $34,079,000 after purchasing an additional 10,331 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,139 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,049,000 after buying an additional 1,151 shares during the period. Davis Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 190.3% in the 3rd quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 8,859 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,782,000 after purchasing an additional 5,807 shares during the period. Consilio Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Consilio Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 11,870 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,398,000 after purchasing an additional 2,034 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. One research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $218.71.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $178.80 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $174.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.31 billion, a PE ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $158.96 and a twelve month high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

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

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.