Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Price Target Lowered to $162.00 at Morgan Stanley

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) had its price target cut by Morgan Stanley from $164.00 to $162.00 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Applied Materials in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.48.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $165.57 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $149.19 and its 200 day moving average is $165.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.67. The company has a market capitalization of $134.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.71. Applied Materials has a fifty-two week low of $123.74 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89.

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

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. This is a boost from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 22.38%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $137.30 per share, for a total transaction of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $235,614,763.40. This trade represents a 3.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 271 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Applied Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Applied Materials by 972.2% in the first quarter. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Materials in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

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.