Squarepoint Ops LLC Has $704,000 Holdings in Materion Co. (NYSE:MTRN)

Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in shares of Materion Co. (NYSE:MTRN - Free Report) by 240.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,120 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,028 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in Materion were worth $704,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Materion by 356.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 34,877 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,902,000 after acquiring an additional 27,244 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Materion by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 8,878 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $878,000 after purchasing an additional 828 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Materion by 54.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 882 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Materion in the 4th quarter valued at $315,000. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its position in Materion by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 625,767 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $61,876,000 after purchasing an additional 22,322 shares during the period. 93.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Materion Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE MTRN traded up $0.18 on Friday, reaching $79.83. The company had a trading volume of 131,605 shares, compared to its average volume of 108,071. Materion Co. has a 52 week low of $69.10 and a 52 week high of $123.21. The stock's 50 day moving average is $78.44 and its 200-day moving average is $91.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 3.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 275.27 and a beta of 0.81.

Materion (NYSE:MTRN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $420.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.83 million. Materion had a return on equity of 12.42% and a net margin of 0.35%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.96 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Materion Co. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Materion Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 29th. This is an increase from Materion's previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. Materion's dividend payout ratio is presently 112.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Gregory R. Chemnitz sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.45, for a total value of $160,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,076,099.20. The trade was a 13.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Materion in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th.

Materion Profile

Materion Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, produces advanced engineered materials used in semiconductor, industrial, aerospace and defense, automotive, energy, consumer electronics, and telecom and data center in the United States, Asia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Performance Materials, Electronic Materials, Precision Optics, and Other.