Natixis Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM)

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Artisan Partners Asset Management by 13.6%, owning 359,176 shares worth approximately $14.04 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Artisan Partners recently announced a quarterly dividend hike to $0.73 per share, representing a 6.5% yield and a payout ratio of 72.34%.
• Despite mixed ratings from analysts, the average price target for Artisan Partners Asset Management stands at $39.30, with a consensus rating of "Hold."

Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM - Free Report) by 13.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 359,176 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 43,022 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.45% of Artisan Partners Asset Management worth $14,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Artisan Partners Asset Management by 208.6% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 574 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management during the first quarter valued at $63,000. CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 77.0% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,126 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 925 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 118,700.0% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,376 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 2,374 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 36.2% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,996 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 1,062 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.45% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Artisan Partners Asset Management news, EVP Samuel Bentson Sellers sold 6,801 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.24, for a total transaction of $300,876.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 40,529 shares in the company, valued at $1,793,002.96. This represents a 14.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Charles J. Daley, Jr. sold 15,448 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.45, for a total transaction of $624,871.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 91,363 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,695,633.35. The trade was a 14.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 12.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:APAM traded down $1.07 during trading on Thursday, reaching $45.19. 241,702 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 583,894. Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.75 and a 12 month high of $49.54. The firm has a market cap of $3.65 billion, a PE ratio of 12.01 and a beta of 1.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The asset manager reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $282.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $269.00 million. Artisan Partners Asset Management had a net margin of 23.87% and a return on equity of 71.72%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. will post 3.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is an increase from Artisan Partners Asset Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.5%. Artisan Partners Asset Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APAM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Artisan Partners Asset Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $46.00 to $35.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, TD Securities boosted their price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Artisan Partners Asset Management currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.30.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Profile

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc is publicly owned investment manager. It provides its services to pension and profit sharing plans, trusts, endowments, foundations, charitable organizations, government entities, private funds and non-U.S. funds, as well as mutual funds, non-U.S. funds and collective trusts.