35,980 Shares in Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. $APAM Purchased by Diversified Management Inc.

Key Points

• Diversified Management Inc. opened a new position in Artisan Partners (NYSE:APAM) in Q4, buying 35,980 shares valued at about $1.47 million; institutional investors own roughly 86.45% of the stock.
• Analysts have trimmed expectations and the consensus is a "Hold" with an average price target of $40.60, amid several recent cuts (e.g., Goldman Sachs to $34 with a "Sell" and Evercore at $37).
• Artisan beat Q4 estimates with EPS of $1.26 vs. $1.11 and revenue of $335.5M (up 13% YoY); the shares trade near $37.58, with a market cap of about $3.03B, P/E ~9.4 and a recently paid $0.57 annual dividend (payout ratio ~100.8%).

Diversified Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 35,980 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $1,466,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WealthCollab LLC raised its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 17.0% during the 2nd quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 6,210 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,730 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,295 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $968,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio raised its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 22,700 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $985,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 86.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on APAM shares. Evercore set a $37.00 price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Artisan Partners Asset Management from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Artisan Partners Asset Management from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $40.60.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APAM opened at $37.58 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $38.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.45. Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. has a twelve month low of $33.88 and a twelve month high of $48.50. The company has a market cap of $3.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.37 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The asset manager reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $335.51 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $322.13 million. Artisan Partners Asset Management had a return on equity of 73.73% and a net margin of 24.26%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. Research analysts predict that Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. will post 3.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 134.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. Artisan Partners Asset Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 100.75%.

About Artisan Partners Asset Management

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc is a global investment management firm that specializes in active, fundamental research-driven strategies across a range of equity, fixed income and alternative asset classes. Founded in 1994 by Andrew Ziegler, the company has built a reputation for its team-based approach to portfolio construction, emphasizing deep sector expertise and independent analysis. Its product lineup includes U.S. and international equity strategies, global emerging markets, as well as credit and multisector fixed income offerings.

Artisan Partners serves a diverse client base that spans institutional investors, intermediaries and high-net-worth individuals located in North America, Europe and Asia.

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