Southpoint Capital Advisors LP Sells 300,000 Shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

Southpoint Capital Advisors LP reduced its stake in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) by 42.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 400,000 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 300,000 shares during the period. AMETEK accounts for approximately 1.7% of Southpoint Capital Advisors LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP owned approximately 0.17% of AMETEK worth $72,104,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in AMETEK by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,147,772 shares of the technology company's stock worth $4,713,397,000 after purchasing an additional 282,208 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in AMETEK by 1.1% during 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. raised 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 worth $1,199,454,000 after purchasing an additional 250,538 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of AMETEK by 70.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 5,760,017 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,038,301,000 after acquiring an additional 2,371,062 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of AMETEK by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,526,369 shares of the technology company's stock worth $993,546,000 after acquiring an additional 124,713 shares in the last quarter. 87.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AMETEK Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of AMETEK stock traded up $0.87 during trading on Thursday, reaching $178.55. 787,379 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,290,409. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock's fifty day moving average is $168.60 and its 200 day moving average is $179.91. The firm has a market cap of $41.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.12. AMETEK, Inc. has a 1 year low of $145.02 and a 1 year high of $198.33.

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

AMETEK declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Friday, February 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.25 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to buy up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

AMETEK Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. AMETEK's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of AMETEK stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total transaction of $125,414.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,560 shares in the company, valued at $1,865,318.40. This trade represents a 6.30% 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 company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on AMETEK from $197.00 to $190.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on AMETEK from $194.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on AMETEK from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Mizuho set a $212.00 price objective on AMETEK in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AMETEK in a research report on Monday, April 14th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $198.10.

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.