AMETEK, Inc. $AME Stock Sold by Candriam S.C.A.

Candriam S.C.A. trimmed its holdings in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) by 79.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,304 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 12,940 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in AMETEK were worth $821,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in AMETEK in the second quarter valued at $4,725,928,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in AMETEK by 7.0% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,994,077 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $724,387,000 after buying an additional 196,986 shares during the period. Flossbach Von Storch SE bought a new stake in AMETEK in the second quarter valued at approximately $662,352,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of AMETEK in the second quarter valued at approximately $624,725,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of AMETEK by 1.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,075,229 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $444,788,000 after buying an additional 29,001 shares during the last quarter. 87.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on AMETEK from $262.00 to $282.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on AMETEK from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AMETEK in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of AMETEK from $291.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank increased their price objective on shares of AMETEK from $288.00 to $318.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AMETEK has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $278.06.

AMETEK Stock Performance

AME opened at $239.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.43. AMETEK, Inc. has a 52-week low of $188.47 and a 52-week high of $261.16. The firm has a market cap of $54.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.96. The business’s fifty day moving average is $243.17 and its 200-day moving average is $234.88.

AMETEK (NYSE:AME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The technology company reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.10. AMETEK had a net margin of 19.91% and a return on equity of 17.12%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that AMETEK, Inc. will post 8.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AMETEK Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 4th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. AMETEK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.18%.

About AMETEK

AMETEK, Inc. is a global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical products. Its businesses serve a range of markets, including aerospace, energy, industrial manufacturing, medical, and transportation. The company’s products include analytical and process instruments, monitoring and measurement systems, aerospace components, precision motors and pumps, and engineered materials. AMETEK organizes its operations into two groups: Electronic Instruments and Electromechanical. Founded in 1930, AMETEK serves customers around the world through manufacturing facilities, sales offices, and service operations in multiple countries.