Slow Capital Inc. Takes Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

Slow Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,278 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Freedom LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. increased its position in shares of Applied Materials by 76.9% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 230 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, RVW Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Applied Materials in the third quarter worth about $41,000. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMAT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on Applied Materials from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Applied Materials from $185.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Bank Of America (Bofa) lifted their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $180.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.50.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT opened at $199.89 on Thursday. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $109.12 and a one year high of $214.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $202.12 and its 200-day moving average is $169.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 2.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $166.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.59.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.23. Applied Materials had a net margin of 27.03% and a return on equity of 43.56%. The firm had revenue of $6.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.48 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. Applied Materials’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This is a positive change from Applied Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.06%.

About 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.