Materion Co. (NYSE:MTRN) Stock Holdings Lessened by Phocas Financial Corp.

Phocas Financial Corp. reduced its stake in Materion Co. (NYSE:MTRN) by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 119,095 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 853 shares during the quarter. Materion comprises approximately 1.9% of Phocas Financial Corp.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Phocas Financial Corp. owned approximately 0.58% of Materion worth $13,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MTRN. State Street Corp lifted its position in Materion by 21.3% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,030,733 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $88,375,000 after buying an additional 181,087 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Materion during the 4th quarter worth approximately $14,780,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Materion during the 1st quarter worth approximately $16,958,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Materion by 37.9% during the 4th quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 239,632 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $20,970,000 after buying an additional 65,848 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Materion by 79.2% during the 2nd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 134,486 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $9,915,000 after buying an additional 59,430 shares during the last quarter. 92.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Materion

In related news, VP Gregory R. Chemnitz sold 320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.11, for a total value of $34,275.20. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,034,018.90. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on MTRN. KeyCorp increased their target price on Materion from $131.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. StockNews.com started coverage on Materion in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. CL King raised their price target on Materion from $128.00 to $133.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 5th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Materion in a report on Wednesday, July 5th.

Materion Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MTRN traded down $0.77 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $104.44. The company had a trading volume of 18,146 shares, compared to its average volume of 105,357. The stock has a market cap of $2.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.29 and a beta of 1.10. Materion Co. has a 12 month low of $64.89 and a 12 month high of $123.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.99 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $109.59.

Materion (NYSE:MTRN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 2nd. The basic materials company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $398.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $451.22 million. Materion had a return on equity of 13.92% and a net margin of 5.77%. The business’s revenue was down 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.28 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Materion Co. will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Materion Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 7th. Investors of record on Friday, August 25th were given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 24th. Materion’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.02%.

Materion Profile

Materion Corporation, through with its subsidiaries, produces advanced engineered materials used in semiconductor, industrial, aerospace and defense, automotive, energy, consumer electronics, and telecom and data center in the United States, Asia, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Performance Materials, Electronic Materials, and Precision Optics segments.