22,688 Shares in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) Bought by Graham Capital Management L.P.

Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 22,688 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $4,090,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new stake in shares of AMETEK during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 1,176.5% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 217 shares of the technology company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 42.9% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 233 shares of the technology company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in AMETEK in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its holdings in AMETEK by 60.9% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 251 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.41, for a total value of $250,021.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,172,512.89. This represents a 5.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total transaction of $125,414.40. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. Insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

AMETEK Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AME traded up $1.64 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $181.02. 161,668 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,288,663. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.52, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.12. The business's fifty day moving average is $168.40 and its 200-day moving average is $179.65. AMETEK, Inc. has a one year low of $145.02 and a one year high of $198.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

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

AMETEK declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, February 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.25 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to purchase up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

AMETEK Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on AMETEK from $194.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AMETEK in a report on Monday, April 14th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded AMETEK from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. BNP Paribas upgraded AMETEK from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $210.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on AMETEK from $197.00 to $190.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $196.90.

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.