Motiv8 Investments LLC Boosts Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Motiv8 Investments LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 2.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,547 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $717,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6.8% during the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 3,908 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $806,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its holdings in Applied Materials by 75.0% in the first quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 700 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $144,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the first quarter worth $320,000. Breakwater Capital Group increased its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.3% during the first quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 1,445 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $298,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LVW Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Applied Materials by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 3,674 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT traded up $2.77 during trading on Friday, hitting $186.52. The company had a trading volume of 4,794,657 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,091,412. The stock has a market cap of $154.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $193.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $208.41. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $129.21 and a one year high of $255.89.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The business had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.90 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Applied Materials in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Citigroup cut their target price on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com cut Applied Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 20th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $229.14.

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.