Materion (NYSE:MTRN) Trading Down 9% - What's Next?

Materion Corporation (NYSE:MTRN - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 9% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $85.12 and last traded at $77.95. Approximately 82,987 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 27% from the average daily volume of 113,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Materion in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Materion from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th.

Materion Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 171.18 and a beta of 0.80. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $79.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.47.

Materion (NYSE:MTRN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.01. Materion had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 0.59%. The firm had revenue of $420.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $396.83 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.96 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Materion Corporation will post 5.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Materion Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 29th. This is a positive change from Materion's previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. Materion's dividend payout ratio is currently 112.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Gregory R. Chemnitz sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owned 13,376 shares in the company, valued at $1,076,099.20. This trade represents a 13.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MTRN. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new stake in shares of Materion in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Materion by 269.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 436 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Materion by 30.3% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,347 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $133,000 after buying an additional 313 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Materion by 722.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,146 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $175,000 after buying an additional 1,885 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Materion during the first quarter valued at $201,000. 93.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Materion

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.