Short Interest in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) Decreases By 23.0%

AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,280,000 shares, a decline of 23.0% from the March 15th total of 2,960,000 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,460,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days.

AMETEK Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE AME traded up $2.53 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $162.18. 1,755,359 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,293,889. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.24. AMETEK has a one year low of $145.02 and a one year high of $198.33. The company's 50-day moving average is $172.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $179.41. The company has a market capitalization of $37.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.14.

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

AMETEK declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Friday, February 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.25 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

AMETEK Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. This is a boost from AMETEK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. AMETEK's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.91%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.41, for a total transaction 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 $4,172,512.89. This trade represents a 5.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total value of $125,414.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,865,318.40. This represents a 6.30 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AMETEK

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AME. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in AMETEK by 72.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,680,309 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $288,526,000 after acquiring an additional 703,501 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AMETEK by 366.1% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 261 shares of the technology company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in AMETEK during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,336,000. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in AMETEK by 27.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 11,938 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 2,540 shares during the period. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp grew its holdings in AMETEK by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 33,034 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $5,672,000 after buying an additional 958 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.43% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

AMETEK Company 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.