Affiliated Managers Group (NYSE:AMG) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Affiliated Managers Group, Inc. (NYSE:AMG)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $265.89 and last traded at $264.4650, with a volume of 44294 shares. The stock had previously closed at $263.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barrington Research increased their price objective on Affiliated Managers Group from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Affiliated Managers Group from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $282.00 target price on shares of Affiliated Managers Group in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Affiliated Managers Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Affiliated Managers Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and seven have given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $290.33.

Affiliated Managers Group Stock Up 0.5%

The firm has a market cap of $7.44 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $244.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $217.37.

Affiliated Managers Group (NYSE:AMG) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The asset manager reported $6.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.88 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $528.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $543.39 million. Affiliated Managers Group had a net margin of 21.79% and a return on equity of 16.11%. Affiliated Managers Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.82 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Affiliated Managers Group, Inc. will post 22.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Affiliated Managers Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 13th will be paid a $0.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 13th. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.0%. Affiliated Managers Group’s dividend payout ratio is 0.24%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Thomas M. Wojcik sold 16,000 shares of Affiliated Managers Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.03, for a total transaction of $3,696,480.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 158,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,666,771.30. This trade represents a 9.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Affiliated Managers Group

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Affiliated Managers Group by 314.3% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,265,655 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $212,668,000 after acquiring an additional 960,158 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Affiliated Managers Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $71,779,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Affiliated Managers Group by 3,811.8% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 311,383 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $61,271,000 after acquiring an additional 303,423 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in Affiliated Managers Group during the third quarter worth approximately $70,356,000. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its stake in Affiliated Managers Group by 97.4% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 350,212 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $83,501,000 after acquiring an additional 172,771 shares during the last quarter. 95.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Affiliated Managers Group

Affiliated Managers Group, Inc, through its affiliates, operates as an investment management company providing investment management services to mutual funds, institutional clients,retails and high net worth individuals in the United States. It provides advisory or sub-advisory services to mutual funds.