Woodline Partners LP Boosts Stake in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) by 890.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,357 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,889 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP’s holdings in AMETEK were worth $6,193,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,147,772 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,713,397,000 after purchasing an additional 282,208 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,956,329 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,614,468,000 after purchasing an additional 98,546 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,985,350 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,199,454,000 after purchasing an additional 250,538 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 70.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 5,760,017 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,038,301,000 after purchasing an additional 2,371,062 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,526,369 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $993,546,000 after purchasing an additional 124,713 shares in the last quarter. 87.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AMETEK Stock Down 0.4%

AME opened at $177.74 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $168.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $179.87. AMETEK, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.02 and a 52 week high of $198.33. The company has a market capitalization of $41.04 billion, a PE ratio of 29.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.12. 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) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.06. AMETEK had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 16.94%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AMETEK declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, February 7th that allows the company to repurchase $1.25 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to buy up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

AMETEK Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. AMETEK’s payout ratio is 20.29%.

Insider Activity at AMETEK

In related news, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.41, for a total value of $250,021.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 22,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,172,512.89. This trade represents a 5.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,865,318.40. The trade was a 6.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AME shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on AMETEK from $194.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded AMETEK from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Mizuho set a $212.00 price target on AMETEK in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Truist Financial increased their price target on AMETEK from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on AMETEK in a research note on Monday, April 14th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $197.89.

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.