Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Has $16.03 Million Stake in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) by 16.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,898 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,584 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in AMETEK were worth $16,025,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AME. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its position in AMETEK by 62.6% during the 3rd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 200 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in AMETEK by 3,116.7% during the fourth 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 period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in AMETEK by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 233 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in AMETEK in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. 87.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AMETEK Stock Down 0.8 %

AME stock opened at $177.34 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $183.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $180.19. AMETEK, Inc. has a 12 month low of $149.03 and a 12 month high of $198.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.14.

AMETEK (NYSE:AME) 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. 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 was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AMETEK announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, February 7th that allows the company to buyback $1.25 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to purchase up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

AMETEK Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from AMETEK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. AMETEK’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AMETEK

In other news, Director Steven W. Kohlhagen sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.41, for a total transaction of $250,021.20. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 22,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,172,512.89. The trade was a 5.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AMETEK from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Bank of America raised AMETEK from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $195.00 to $225.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. KeyCorp increased their target price on AMETEK from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on AMETEK from $221.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of AMETEK from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $210.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AMETEK has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.67.

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.