UPDATE: J.P. Morgan Initiates Coverage on Applied Materials as Inflections in Semi Manufacturing Drive Growth Outlook

In a report published Monday, J.P. Morgan analyst Harlan Sur initiated coverage on

with a Neutral rating and $19.00 price target. In the report, J.P. Morgan noted, “Initiating on AMAT at Neutral; scale leadership with Tokyo Electron should help it tackle tough 450mm and EUV inflection points beyond 2016, but valuations (even including TEL) suggest limited upside from current levels. Our Dec 2014 price target of $19.0 assumes an average cross-cycle P/E multiple of ~15.75x our CY14E pro forma EPS of 1.18.” Applied Materials closed on Friday at $18.00.