Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Raised to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $158.00 price objective on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $162.00. Morgan Stanley’s price objective points to a potential downside of 5.24% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on AMAT. B. Riley lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.29.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $166.74 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $152.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.19. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a market cap of $133.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $7.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total value of $65,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $880,131.91. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.3% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 12,053 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,749,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 126.0% during the first quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,057 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,475,000 after buying an additional 9,509 shares during the period. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth $34,455,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 12.3% during the first quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 21,093 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $3,061,000 after buying an additional 2,308 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 5.1% during the first quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 8,922 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,295,000 after buying an additional 436 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.