Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC Makes New Investment in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,087 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $376,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AME. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in AMETEK by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 41,862 shares of the technology company's stock worth $7,547,000 after buying an additional 6,184 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 12,241 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AMETEK by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 40,577 shares of the technology company's stock worth $7,314,000 after acquiring an additional 6,321 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its holdings in AMETEK by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 123,717 shares of the technology company's stock worth $22,301,000 after purchasing an additional 3,833 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. boosted its position in shares of AMETEK by 573.4% during the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 151,258 shares of the technology company's stock worth $26,331,000 after acquiring an additional 128,795 shares during the last quarter. 87.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AMETEK Stock Performance

NYSE AME traded down $2.83 on Monday, reaching $154.98. 112,162 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,281,473. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $174.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $179.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market cap of $35.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.14. AMETEK, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.02 and a fifty-two week high of $198.33.

AMETEK (NYSE:AME - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.02. AMETEK had a return on equity of 16.94% and a net margin of 19.83%. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.68 earnings per share. AMETEK's quarterly revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AMETEK Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a boost from AMETEK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. AMETEK's payout ratio is currently 20.91%.

AMETEK announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Friday, February 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.25 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to buy up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial cut their price target on AMETEK from $216.00 to $196.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of AMETEK from $200.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AMETEK in a report on Monday, April 14th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. BNP Paribas upgraded AMETEK from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of AMETEK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $198.60.

Insider Activity at AMETEK

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

AMETEK 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.