ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 7,311 Shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) by 8.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 90,780 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,311 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in AMETEK were worth $15,627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 183,024 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $32,992,000 after buying an additional 34,866 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AMETEK by 25.1% in the fourth quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,169 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in AMETEK by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,528 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $456,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in AMETEK by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 15,294 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,757,000 after purchasing an additional 2,112 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in AMETEK by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,331,567 shares of the technology company's stock worth $240,028,000 after purchasing an additional 39,918 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.43% of the company's stock.

AMETEK Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of AME stock traded up $2.20 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $184.19. 719,336 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,303,844. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $177.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $177.02. AMETEK, Inc. has a 12-month low of $145.02 and a 12-month high of $198.33. The stock has a market cap of $42.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.15, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.09.

AMETEK (NYSE:AME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.06. AMETEK had a return on equity of 16.75% and a net margin of 20.43%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.64 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

AMETEK Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. AMETEK's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AMETEK from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Mizuho set a $212.00 price objective on shares of AMETEK in a report on Friday, May 16th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on AMETEK from $197.00 to $190.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on AMETEK from $194.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AMETEK in a research note on Monday, April 14th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $197.89.

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.