Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Friday.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on AMAT. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Applied Materials from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $162.00 to $158.00 in a research note on Friday. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Applied Materials from $205.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.29.

Applied Materials Trading Up 1.6%

AMAT opened at $166.74 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $133.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.67. Applied Materials has a 12 month low of $123.74 and a 12 month high of $255.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $152.23 and a 200 day moving average of $163.11.

Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The manufacturing equipment provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. Applied Materials had a return on equity of 39.50% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Applied Materials will post 9.38 EPS for the current year.

Applied Materials announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the manufacturing equipment provider to buy up to 8.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Materials news, CEO Gary E. Dickerson acquired 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $137.30 per share, with a total value of $6,865,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,716,058 shares in the company, valued at $235,614,763.40. This represents a 3.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Adam Sanders sold 450 shares of Applied Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.83, for a total transaction of $65,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $880,131.91. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Materials

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Materials by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC now owns 2,060 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock valued at $335,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 3,734 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 1,862 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,061 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Old Port Advisors lifted its position in shares of Applied Materials by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 2,730 shares of the manufacturing equipment provider’s stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. 80.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.