AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) Shares Sold by Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. reduced its position in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) by 62.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 164,141 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 269,620 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.07% of AMETEK worth $29,588,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AME. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in AMETEK by 3,116.7% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 193 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its position in AMETEK by 1,176.5% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 217 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AMETEK by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 233 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of AMETEK in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its position in AMETEK by 366.1% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 261 shares of the technology company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the period. 87.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AMETEK Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AME traded down $2.03 during trading on Thursday, reaching $167.56. The company had a trading volume of 793,318 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,296,771. AMETEK, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.02 and a fifty-two week high of $198.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $170.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $179.38.

AMETEK (NYSE:AME - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.74 billion. AMETEK had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 16.94%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

AMETEK announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, February 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.25 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

AMETEK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. This is a boost from AMETEK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. AMETEK's payout ratio is presently 20.91%.

Insider Activity at AMETEK

In other AMETEK news, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of AMETEK stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 22,029 shares in the company, valued at $4,172,512.89. This trade represents a 5.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total value of $125,414.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,865,318.40. This trade represents a 6.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AMETEK in a research report on Monday, April 14th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded AMETEK from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $210.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of AMETEK from $216.00 to $196.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of AMETEK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on AMETEK from $200.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AMETEK has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $198.60.

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.