The Goldman Sachs Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Price

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price objective trimmed by The Goldman Sachs Group from $230.00 to $202.00 in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on AMAT. Mizuho cut their target price on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued 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 $171.65 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $173.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $193.18. Applied Materials has a fifty-two week low of $148.48 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $139.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 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 announced its earnings results 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. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials will post 9.48 earnings per share 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 17,176 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,053,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the second quarter valued at about $306,000. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 8.1% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 2,895 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $683,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Ullmann Wealth Partners Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter worth about $254,000. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 32.7% in the 2nd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 17,416 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,110,000 after purchasing an additional 4,295 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.