AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) Shares Sold by Gamco Investors INC. ET AL

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lowered its stake in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME - Free Report) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 653,148 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 12,620 shares during the quarter. AMETEK comprises about 1.2% of Gamco Investors INC. ET AL's portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL owned about 0.28% of AMETEK worth $117,736,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 3,116.7% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 193 shares of the technology company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its position in shares of AMETEK by 1,176.5% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 217 shares of the technology company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of AMETEK by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 233 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of AMETEK in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in AMETEK by 60.9% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 251 shares of the technology company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of the company's 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 sale, the director now directly owns 22,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,172,512.89. This represents a 5.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total value of $125,414.40. Following 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 owned by company insiders.

AMETEK Stock Performance

NYSE AME traded down $0.86 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $157.66. The company had a trading volume of 1,698,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,286,047. The business has a 50 day moving average of $174.27 and a 200-day moving average of $179.70. The company has a market cap of $36.38 billion, a PE ratio of 26.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.14. AMETEK, Inc. has a 1-year low of $145.02 and a 1-year high of $198.33. 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 (NYSE:AME - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.82 billion. AMETEK had a return on equity of 16.94% and a net margin of 19.83%. The business's revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

AMETEK announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Friday, February 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.25 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

AMETEK Increases Dividend

The firm 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 0.79%. This is a boost from AMETEK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. AMETEK's payout ratio is presently 20.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of AMETEK from $200.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of AMETEK from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $210.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on AMETEK from $216.00 to $196.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on AMETEK in a research report on Monday, April 14th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $170.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of AMETEK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $198.60.

About AMETEK

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.