Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. Trims Holdings in Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM)

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:APAM) by 6.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,650 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 2,100 shares during the period. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Artisan Partners Asset Management were worth $1,442,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in Artisan Partners Asset Management by 28.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 177,515 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $6,643,000 after acquiring an additional 38,951 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its position in Artisan Partners Asset Management by 29.3% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 934,546 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $41,288,000 after acquiring an additional 211,965 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Artisan Partners Asset Management during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,208,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Artisan Partners Asset Management by 30.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 361,111 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $13,513,000 after acquiring an additional 83,998 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ClariVest Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Artisan Partners Asset Management during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $879,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.45% of the company’s stock.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:APAM traded down $0.24 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $41.72. The company had a trading volume of 155,016 shares, compared to its average volume of 478,958. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.75 and a beta of 1.85. Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.27 and a 12-month high of $46.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $43.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.12.

Artisan Partners Asset Management (NYSE:APAM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The asset manager reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $264.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $270.90 million. Artisan Partners Asset Management had a return on equity of 72.77% and a net margin of 22.99%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.64 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Artisan Partners Asset Management Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.85%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Artisan Partners Asset Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Artisan Partners Asset Management news, EVP Gregory K. Ramirez sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.28, for a total transaction of $105,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 83,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,523,403.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 18.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on APAM shares. StockNews.com raised Artisan Partners Asset Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 17th. TD Cowen started coverage on Artisan Partners Asset Management in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $41.00 price target on the stock.

About Artisan Partners Asset Management

Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc is publicly owned investment manager. It provides its services to pension and profit sharing plans, trusts, endowments, foundations, charitable organizations, government entities, private funds and non-U.S. funds, as well as mutual funds, non-U.S. funds and collective trusts.