Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Purchases 31,607 Shares of Amphenol Co. (NYSE:APH)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Amphenol Co. (NYSE:APH) by 586.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,001 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,607 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Amphenol were worth $3,668,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in APH. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Amphenol by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 28,057 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $2,357,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Amphenol by 16.1% in the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 10,601 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $890,000 after purchasing an additional 1,468 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Amphenol by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 130,468 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $10,958,000 after acquiring an additional 2,125 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio increased its stake in shares of Amphenol by 2.0% during the third quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 153,594 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $12,900,000 after purchasing an additional 3,073 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Merchants Corp raised its stake in Amphenol by 1.8% during the third quarter. First Merchants Corp now owns 127,482 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $10,707,000 after buying an additional 2,297 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.01% of the company’s stock.

Amphenol Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE APH opened at $122.64 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.27. Amphenol Co. has a 12-month low of $72.77 and a 12-month high of $123.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $113.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.27.

Amphenol (NYSE:APH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The electronics maker reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. Amphenol had a return on equity of 23.85% and a net margin of 15.87%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.69 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Amphenol Co. will post 3.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amphenol Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 18th. Amphenol’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.91%.

Amphenol declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the electronics maker to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Amphenol from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Amphenol from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Amphenol from $117.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Amphenol from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Amphenol from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $118.83.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Craig A. Lampo sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.67, for a total transaction of $10,467,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 147,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,391,200.15. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Craig A. Lampo sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.67, for a total transaction of $10,467,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 147,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,391,200.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Lance E. D’amico sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.75, for a total value of $1,571,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 25,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,692,075. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 135,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,251,050. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Amphenol Company Profile

Amphenol Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, primarily designs, manufactures, and markets electrical, electronic, and fiber optic connectors in the United States, China, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Harsh Environment Solutions, Communications Solutions, and Interconnect and Sensor Systems.