Groupama Asset Managment Sells 5,810 Shares of AMETEK, Inc. $AME

Key Points

• Groupama Asset Management cut its AMETEK stake by 32.2% in the first quarter, selling 5,810 shares and retaining 12,234 shares valued at approximately $2.62 million.
• AMETEK reported first-quarter results above expectations, with EPS of $1.97 versus the $1.90 consensus and revenue of $1.93 billion, up 11.3% year over year.
• The stock traded near its 52-week high at $242.19, while analysts maintained a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $256.29; institutional investors own 87.43% of shares.

Groupama Asset Managment lessened its stake in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) by 32.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,234 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 5,810 shares during the quarter. Groupama Asset Managment's holdings in AMETEK were worth $2,622,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AME. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of AMETEK by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,956,361 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,044,140,000 after acquiring an additional 192,677 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in AMETEK by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,891,236 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,204,722,000 after acquiring an additional 37,651 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in AMETEK by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,463,518 shares of the technology company's stock worth $839,141,000 after acquiring an additional 209,043 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in AMETEK in the 4th quarter worth approximately $831,372,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in AMETEK by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,963,062 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $813,657,000 after purchasing an additional 110,037 shares during the period. 87.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AMETEK Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AME opened at $242.19 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $233.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $228.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.58, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.99. AMETEK, Inc. has a one year low of $179.24 and a one year high of $244.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

AMETEK (NYSE:AME - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.07. AMETEK had a net margin of 20.11% and a return on equity of 16.63%. The firm had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.75 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that AMETEK, Inc. will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMETEK Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. AMETEK's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AME has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AMETEK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded AMETEK from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup initiated coverage on AMETEK in a research note on Monday, June 15th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $257.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of AMETEK in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on AMETEK from $259.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $256.29.

AMETEK Profile

AMETEK, Inc is a global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices that serves a broad range of industries. Headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, the company designs and produces precision instruments, electronic measurement devices, specialty sensors, and electric motors and motion control systems. Its product portfolio includes analytical and monitoring instruments, calibration equipment, power supplies, embedded electronics, and industrial motors and drives used for critical applications.

The company operates through two primary business platforms — an electronic instruments group focused on analytical, test and measurement and sensor products, and an electromechanical group that supplies motors, actuators, and related power and motion solutions.

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