KBC Group NV Lowers Position in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT)

KBC Group NV lessened its stake in Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) by 5.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,662,374 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock after selling 90,329 shares during the quarter. Applied Materials comprises approximately 1.0% of KBC Group NV’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. KBC Group NV owned approximately 0.20% of Applied Materials worth $335,882,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Applied Materials by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,184 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,131,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its position in Applied Materials by 7.4% in the first quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 57,383 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $11,834,000 after acquiring an additional 3,964 shares in the last quarter. ProVise Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Materials during the first quarter worth $361,000. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its holdings in Applied Materials by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,041 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,246,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Materials by 96.6% in the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 173 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on AMAT. Dbs Bank cut Applied Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. B. Riley reduced their price target on shares of Applied Materials from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on 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. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $227.24.

Applied Materials Price Performance

Shares of AMAT stock opened at $182.79 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $150.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.56. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $190.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.30. Applied Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $141.94 and a one year high of $255.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.86 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.78 billion during 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%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.90 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Applied Materials, Inc. will post 8.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Applied Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. Applied Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.98%.

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.