Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 453,165 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $92,527,000. Applied Materials makes up approximately 1.1% of Erste Asset Management GmbH's holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned 0.05% of Applied Materials as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Applied Materials by 29.8% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,571,178 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $1,327,707,000 after acquiring an additional 1,509,439 shares in the last quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 47.0% in the 3rd quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 67,915 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $13,722,000 after purchasing an additional 21,699 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,139,114 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock worth $230,158,000 after purchasing an additional 15,183 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 62.6% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,698,282 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $343,138,000 after purchasing an additional 653,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stiles Financial Services Inc boosted its position in Applied Materials by 252.0% in the third quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 4,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider's stock valued at $957,000 after buying an additional 3,389 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Shares of NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $174.71 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $188.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $204.50. The company has a market capitalization of $144.03 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.56. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.57 and a 52 week high of $255.89. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.13. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. The business had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors 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 dividend yield of 0.92%. Applied Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.58%.
A number of equities research analysts recently commented on AMAT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Applied Materials from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Applied Materials from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $179.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Materials has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $221.48.
View Our Latest Analysis on 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.
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