Materion (NYSE:MTRN) Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Materion (NYSE:MTRN) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning.

Separately, KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Materion from $156.00 to $152.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th.

Materion Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of MTRN opened at $107.48 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $111.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $119.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a PE ratio of 26.94 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Materion has a 12-month low of $92.23 and a 12-month high of $145.08.

Materion (NYSE:MTRN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.98 by ($0.02). Materion had a return on equity of 12.32% and a net margin of 5.19%. The business had revenue of $385.29 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $386.84 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.34 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Materion will post 5.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Materion Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd were given a dividend of $0.135 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 22nd. This is a boost from Materion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. Materion’s dividend payout ratio is 13.53%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Gregory R. Chemnitz sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.31, for a total value of $226,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,043,092.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Emily M. Liggett sold 1,152 shares of Materion stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $128,862.72. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $293,185.06. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Gregory R. Chemnitz sold 2,000 shares of Materion stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.31, for a total value of $226,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,043,092.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Materion

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in Materion by 529.0% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 195 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Materion during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Materion in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new position in shares of Materion in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Materion by 285.6% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 428 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.56% of the company’s stock.

About Materion

Materion Corporation, together 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. The company operates in four segments: Performance Materials, Electronic Materials, Precision Optics, and Other.