Groupama Asset Managment Decreases Stake in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

Groupama Asset Managment trimmed its holdings in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,135 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 3,238 shares during the quarter. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in AMETEK were worth $5,085,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,450 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $261,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC lifted its position in AMETEK by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 14,277 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,574,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AMETEK by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 3,348 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $604,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 233 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of AMETEK by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,843 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $332,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.43% of the company’s stock.

AMETEK Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AME opened at $171.96 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $182.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $181.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.68 billion, a PE ratio of 29.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.14. AMETEK, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.03 and a fifty-two week high of $198.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.24.

AMETEK (NYSE:AME) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.02. AMETEK had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 16.94%. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AMETEK Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a positive change from AMETEK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. AMETEK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.91%.

AMETEK declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Friday, February 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.25 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on AME shares. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of AMETEK from $221.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Bank of America raised AMETEK from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $195.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of AMETEK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of AMETEK from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $210.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of AMETEK from $200.00 to $197.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.67.

Insider Transactions at AMETEK

In related news, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total transaction of $125,414.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,560 shares in the company, valued at $1,865,318.40. This trade represents a 6.30 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.41, for a total value of $250,021.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 22,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,172,512.89. This represents a 5.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

AMETEK Profile

AMETEK, Inc manufactures and sells electronic instruments and electromechanical devices in the North America, Europe, Asia, and South America, and internationally. The company's EIG segment offers advanced instruments for the process, aerospace, power, and industrial markets; process and analytical instruments for the oil and gas, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, semiconductor, automation, and food and beverage industries; instruments to the laboratory equipment, ultra-precision manufacturing, medical, and test and measurement markets; power quality monitoring and c devices, uninterruptible power supplies, programmable power and electromagnetic compatibility test equipment, and sensors for gas turbines and dashboard instruments; heavy trucks, instrumentation, and controls for the food and beverage industries; and aircraft and engine sensors, power supplies, embedded computing, monitoring, fuel and fluid measurement, and data acquisition systems for aerospace and defense industry.