AMETEK Inc.’s AME first quarter 2016 earnings of 57 cents per share matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Earnings decreased 9.9% sequentially and 9.8% year over year. Revenues of $944.4 million missed the Zacks Consensus estimate of $964.5 million by 2.1%. Total Revenue AMETEK reported revenues of $944.4 million, down 4.4% sequentially and 4% year over year. The company has two operating segments — Electronic Instruments Group (EIG) and Electromechanical Group (EMG) — which accounted for 60% and 40% of total first quarter revenue, respectively. Revenues by Segment EIG revenues were down 9.5% sequentially and 4.2% on a year-over-year basis to $568.9 million. This decrease in segment revenues resulted from lower revenues in the process business due to weakness in oil and gas. Shares are down over 7%. EMG sales were up 4.4% sequentially but down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis to $375.442 million. The year-over-year decline was mainly due to deflation across packaging, Interconnects and Engineered Materials Business. Operating Performance AMETEK’s gross margin for the quarter was 35.9%, up 145 basis points (bps) from 34.5% in the preceding quarter and 53 bps from 35.4% a year ago. The company reported operating income of $208.5 million, lower than the previous quarter’s income of $229.5 million and the year-ago quarter figure of $236.8 million. Operating margin of 22.1% was down 115 bps sequentially and 199 bps year over year. Operating Profit by Segment The EIG segment’s operating income was $141.8 million, down 11.6% from the first quarter of 2015. Operating margin was 24.9%. EMG segment operating income was down 10.3% year over year to $79.4 million. Operating margin was 21.2%. Net Income AMETEK’s net income was $134.2 million, or 14.2% of net income margin, compared with $150.5 million, or 15.2%, in the previous quarter and $152.9 million, or 15.5%, in the year-ago period. Adjusted earnings of 57 cents per share were considerably lower than 63 cents reported in both the previous preceding and the year-ago quarters. GAAP EPS in the last quarter was 57 cents and 59 cents in the year-ago quarter. Balance Sheet Cash and cash equivalents balance at the end of the quarter was $386.9 million, up from $381.0 million in the previous quarter. Long-term debt was $1.55 billion nearly same as in the previous quarter. Outlook For 2016, management expects revenues to be roughly flat compared with 2015. Earnings are expected to be in a range of $2.42 to $2.52 per share, down 1% to 5% from 2015 adjusted results. For the second quarter, management expects revenues to be down in low single digits compared with the second quarter of 2015. Earnings are expected to be in a range of $58 cents to 59 cents per share, down 8% to 9% from the second quarter of 2015. Our Take AMETEK’s first quarter results were in line with management’s expectations. The bottom line matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate whereas the top line missed the same. The company’s revenues were negatively impacted by reduced demand stemming from the weakness in oil and gas, metals and global industrial markets. The company believes that strong execution of its four core growth strategies of operational excellence, global market expansion, investments in product development and strategic acquisitions will continue to drive growth. This, in combination with a strong portfolio of differentiated businesses, will help the company to post better results, going forward. AMETEK has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Stocks to Consider Some better-ranked stocks in the industry are Alphatec Holdings, Inc. ATEC, Corindus Vascular Robotics Inc. CVRS and Edwards Lifesciences Corp. EW. All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report EDWARDS LIFESCI (EW): Free Stock Analysis Report ALPHATEC HLDGS (ATEC): Free Stock Analysis Report AMETEK INC (AME): Free Stock Analysis Report CORINDUS VASCLR (CVRS): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research