Telos Capital Management Inc. Cuts Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Telos Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 9.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,488 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 260 shares during the period. Telos Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Applied Materials were worth $405,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its holdings in Applied Materials by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 3,903 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $635,000 after buying an additional 589 shares during the period. Caitlin John LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Caitlin John LLC now owns 14,736 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,397,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 33,825 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vision Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Applied Materials by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Vision Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,575 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,395,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.56% of the company’s stock.

Applied Materials Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMAT opened at $182.80 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $174.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $185.88. The firm has a market cap of $148.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.23, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.53. Applied Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $158.96 and a 52-week high of $255.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.96 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.26% and a net margin of 26.41%. Applied Materials’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.12 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors 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 yield of 0.88%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $218.71.

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.