Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) Position Reduced by Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 55.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,145 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 7,510 shares during the quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $1,242,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 4.4% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 263,586 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $53,258,000 after purchasing an additional 10,991 shares in the last quarter. Intellectus Partners LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials during the third quarter valued at $737,000. Balboa Wealth Partners lifted its stake in Applied Materials by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 5,340 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $1,079,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Applied Materials by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,223 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $2,672,000 after acquiring an additional 1,531 shares during the period. Finally, Sargent Investment Group LLC grew its stake in Applied Materials by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMAT opened at $186.00 on Friday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $141.94 and a 1 year high of $255.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $190.88 and its 200-day moving average is $207.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.34 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.56.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $6.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.90 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.51 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 17.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AMAT shares. Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Dbs Bank downgraded Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Applied Materials from $240.00 to $217.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.90.

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.