Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI Trims Holdings in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME)

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI trimmed its position in AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) by 0.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,505 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 399 shares during the period. AMETEK comprises about 1.4% of Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s holdings in AMETEK were worth $17,817,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AMETEK by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,147,772 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,713,397,000 after purchasing an additional 282,208 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,956,329 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,614,468,000 after acquiring an additional 98,546 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 70.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 5,760,017 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,038,301,000 after acquiring an additional 2,371,062 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,526,369 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $993,546,000 after acquiring an additional 124,713 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of AMETEK by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,415,508 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $795,939,000 after acquiring an additional 99,505 shares during the period. 87.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AMETEK Stock Up 0.9%

AME opened at $178.55 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $171.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.96. The company has a market cap of $41.22 billion, a PE ratio of 30.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.10. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $1.75 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. AMETEK’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that AMETEK, Inc. will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current year.

AMETEK Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. AMETEK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AMETEK

In other AMETEK news, Director Thomas A. Amato sold 710 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.64, for a total value of $125,414.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,865,318.40. This trade represents a 6.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AME has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AMETEK from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of AMETEK from $197.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AMETEK in a report on Monday, April 14th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of AMETEK from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of AMETEK from $194.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $197.89.

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.