Mizuho Has Lowered Expectations for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Stock Price

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price target reduced by Mizuho from $205.00 to $195.00 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. B. Riley reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $164.00 to $162.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.48.

Applied Materials Stock Down 5.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $165.57 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $134.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a 50 day moving average of $149.19 and a 200-day moving average of $165.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.96. Applied Materials has a one year low of $123.74 and a one year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 39.50%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the manufacturing equipment provider to repurchase up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 22.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson purchased 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,614,763.40. The trade was a 3.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.72, for a total transaction of $46,807.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,119,052.88. This trade represents a 4.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AMAT. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,588,422,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter valued at about $1,085,600,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2,401.0% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,066,817 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $445,056,000 after purchasing an additional 2,944,193 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 18,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,824,304 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,647,430,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,444 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 43.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,573,673 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $808,853,000 after purchasing an additional 1,691,428 shares during the period. 80.56% of the stock is 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.