UBS Group Boosts Amphenol (NYSE:APH) Price Target to $138.00

Amphenol (NYSE:APH) had its price target raised by UBS Group from $135.00 to $138.00 in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the electronics maker’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Amphenol from $107.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Amphenol from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Amphenol from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Amphenol from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Amphenol in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. They issued a hold rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $118.83.

Amphenol Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE APH opened at $120.49 on Thursday. Amphenol has a one year low of $72.77 and a one year high of $121.25. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 2.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.48 billion, a PE ratio of 36.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.30.

Amphenol (NYSE:APH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The electronics maker reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.07. Amphenol had a net margin of 15.87% and a return on equity of 23.85%. The business had revenue of $3.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Amphenol will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Amphenol Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 19th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Amphenol’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.91%.

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

Insider Transactions at Amphenol

In other news, CFO Craig A. Lampo sold 100,000 shares of Amphenol stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.67, for a total value of $10,467,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now 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 accessible through the SEC website. In other news, VP Lance E. D’amico sold 15,000 shares of Amphenol stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.75, for a total value of $1,571,250.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 25,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,692,075. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Craig A. Lampo sold 100,000 shares of Amphenol 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 147,045 shares in the company, valued at $15,391,200.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 305,000 shares of company stock valued at $31,846,050 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Amphenol in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,589,000. West Coast Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Amphenol by 65.0% in the fourth quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 128,911 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $12,779,000 after acquiring an additional 50,778 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in Amphenol by 63.4% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 38,264 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $3,793,000 after purchasing an additional 14,843 shares in the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in Amphenol during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,875,000. Finally, Fortune Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Amphenol during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,071,000. 97.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Amphenol

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.