Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on APAM. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Artisan Partners Asset Management from $53.00 to $51.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Artisan Partners Asset Management presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $44.38.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Stock Performance

APAM traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $44.51. 341,975 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 469,040. The company's fifty day moving average price is $44.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 1.81. Artisan Partners Asset Management has a 52-week low of $37.89 and a 52-week high of $49.54.

Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The asset manager reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.08. Artisan Partners Asset Management had a return on equity of 74.02% and a net margin of 23.36%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Artisan Partners Asset Management will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.49%. Artisan Partners Asset Management's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 90.11%.

Institutional Trading of Artisan Partners Asset Management

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management during the 2nd quarter valued at $388,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management during the second quarter worth approximately $366,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 35,089 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,448,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in Artisan Partners Asset Management during the second quarter valued at approximately $287,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Artisan Partners Asset Management in the second quarter worth $465,000. 86.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Artisan Partners Asset Management

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc is publicly owned investment manager. It provides its services to pension and profit sharing plans, trusts, endowments, foundations, charitable organizations, government entities, private funds and non-U.S. funds, as well as mutual funds, non-U.S. funds and collective trusts.