Principal Securities Inc. Buys 8,931 Shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 40.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,842 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,931 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $5,016,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 592.9% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in Applied Materials by 61.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 213 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $216.10.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

AMAT opened at $169.20 on Monday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $158.96 and a fifty-two week high of $255.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a fifty day moving average of $175.36 and a 200 day moving average of $184.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.51.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.10. Applied Materials had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 39.26%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Applied Materials’s payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

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.