Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM) Shares Down 3.9% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• APAM shares fell 3.9% to approximately $38.16, with trading volume 84% below its average. Analysts’ consensus rating is “Reduce,” with an average price target of $38.00.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.94 in earnings per share and $307.91 million in revenue, while revenue rose 8.9% year over year.
• Artisan Partners increased its quarterly dividend to $0.80, representing an annualized payout of $3.20 and an attractive 8.4% yield; however, an executive recently sold 7,000 shares.

Shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM - Get Free Report) dropped 3.9% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $37.75 and last traded at $38.1570. 118,321 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 760,492 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.70.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on APAM shares. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating and set a $37.00 price target on shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management in a research note on Friday. Evercore set a $36.00 price objective on Artisan Partners Asset Management in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $38.00.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $40.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.19.

Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The asset manager reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.03. Artisan Partners Asset Management had a return on equity of 73.11% and a net margin of 24.08%.The business had revenue of $307.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $301.32 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. will post 3.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This is an increase from Artisan Partners Asset Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.4%. Artisan Partners Asset Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Artisan Partners Asset Management

In other news, EVP Gregory Ramirez sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.59, for a total transaction of $298,130.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 109,194 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,650,572.46. The trade was a 6.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 11.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Artisan Partners Asset Management

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. WealthCollab LLC increased its position in Artisan Partners Asset Management by 17.0% during the second quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd boosted its holdings in Artisan Partners Asset Management by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 29,793 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,214,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 45.8% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 955 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 64,112 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,842,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC increased its holdings in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 20,850 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $905,000 after buying an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.45% of the company's stock.

About Artisan Partners Asset Management

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc is a global investment management firm that specializes in active, fundamental research-driven strategies across a range of equity, fixed income and alternative asset classes. Founded in 1994 by Andrew Ziegler, the company has built a reputation for its team-based approach to portfolio construction, emphasizing deep sector expertise and independent analysis. Its product lineup includes U.S. and international equity strategies, global emerging markets, as well as credit and multisector fixed income offerings.

Artisan Partners serves a diverse client base that spans institutional investors, intermediaries and high-net-worth individuals located in North America, Europe and Asia.

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