Comerica Bank Has $10.76 Million Stock Holdings in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

Comerica Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) by 9.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 59,675 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 6,508 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in AMETEK were worth $10,757,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AMETEK by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,147,772 shares of the technology company's stock worth $4,713,397,000 after acquiring an additional 282,208 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,956,329 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,614,468,000 after purchasing an additional 98,546 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in AMETEK by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,985,350 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,199,454,000 after purchasing an additional 250,538 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in AMETEK by 70.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 5,760,017 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,038,301,000 after buying an additional 2,371,062 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in AMETEK by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,526,369 shares of the technology company's stock worth $993,546,000 after buying an additional 124,713 shares during the period. 87.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AMETEK Price Performance

NYSE AME traded up $0.12 on Monday, reaching $170.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,476,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,291,681. AMETEK, Inc. has a twelve month low of $145.02 and a twelve month 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. The firm's 50 day moving average is $169.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $179.49. The stock has a market cap of $39.27 billion, a PE ratio of 28.70, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.12.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 last year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

AMETEK Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. This is an increase from AMETEK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. AMETEK's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.29%.

AMETEK announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AME. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of AMETEK in a report on Monday, April 14th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com cut AMETEK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on AMETEK from $200.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on AMETEK from $194.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on AMETEK from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $197.60.

Insider Activity 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 shares were sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total value of $125,414.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.41, for a total transaction of $250,021.20. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 22,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,172,512.89. This trade represents a 5.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AMETEK Company 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.