Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC Lowers Holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC cut its position in shares of Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 11.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,996 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 1,908 shares during the period. Applied Materials comprises 1.8% of Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $3,030,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Materials during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. PSI Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 56.0% during the second quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, Clean Yield Group bought a new position in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. 80.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Materials Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMAT traded up $2.56 on Thursday, hitting $187.15. 1,526,112 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,059,660. The firm has a market capitalization of $154.96 billion, a PE ratio of 21.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.54. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $255.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $195.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $209.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $6.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 39.99%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.90 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.49 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AMAT shares. B. Riley cut their price target on Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $224.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $229.14.

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.