Amphenol (NYSE:APH) Reaches New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Amphenol Co. (NYSE:APH - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after Bank of America raised their price target on the stock from $137.00 to $144.00. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the stock. Amphenol traded as high as $134.06 and last traded at $133.87, with a volume of 734369 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $131.91.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on APH. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Amphenol from $117.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Amphenol from $107.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Amphenol from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Amphenol from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Amphenol in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. They set a "hold" rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $124.45.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Peter Straub sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.64, for a total value of $2,212,800.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Amphenol

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FDx Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Amphenol during the third quarter valued at $253,000. Duality Advisers LP purchased a new position in Amphenol during the third quarter valued at $1,163,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Amphenol by 21.2% during the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,991 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 2,096 shares in the last quarter. Compass Ion Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Amphenol during the third quarter valued at $1,008,000. Finally, Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its holdings in Amphenol by 1.5% during the third quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 8,773 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $737,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. 97.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Amphenol Trading Up 1.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.06 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.10 billion, a PE ratio of 40.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.27. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $117.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.66.

Amphenol (NYSE:APH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The electronics maker reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. Amphenol had a net margin of 15.87% and a return on equity of 23.85%. The company's revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.69 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Amphenol Co. will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amphenol Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 18th. Amphenol's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.91%.

Amphenol announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 24th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the electronics maker to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

About Amphenol

Amphenol Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, primarily designs, manufactures, and markets electrical, electronic, and fiber optic connectors in the United States, China, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Harsh Environment Solutions, Communications Solutions, and Interconnect and Sensor Systems.