Berbice Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,020 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $166,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Southland Equity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 1,620 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 5,996 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $975,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the period. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 271.9% during the fourth quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 20,698 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,387,000 after acquiring an additional 15,133 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 83.9% during the fourth quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 7,702 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,253,000 after acquiring an additional 3,513 shares during the period. Finally, Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Materials by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC now owns 17,161 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,791,000 after acquiring an additional 2,165 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AMAT has been the topic of several recent research reports. KeyCorp raised shares of Applied Materials from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. One equities 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 price target of $218.71.

Applied Materials Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $189.09 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $153.86 billion, a PE ratio of 21.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 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. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $173.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $189.91. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $158.96 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. The firm 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%. Applied Materials’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Applied Materials 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.