Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Astronics Corporation's stock price recently hit a new 52-week high of $49.96, with analysts offering a mix of ratings; some remain bullish while others express caution.
• The firm has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion and reported earnings exceeding analyst expectations, with $0.38 earnings per share against an expected $0.33.
• Insider trading activity showed a significant sale by an insider, leading to a 51.44% reduction in their ownership stake in the company.

Astronics Corporation (NASDAQ:ATRO - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $49.96 and last traded at $49.80, with a volume of 308642 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $47.63.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ATRO. Craig Hallum began coverage on Astronics in a research note on Friday, October 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Astronics from $49.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Astronics in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research downgraded Astronics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Astronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, October 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Astronics presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $59.00.

Astronics Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.76 billion, a PE ratio of -412.80 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 3.04 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $41.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.06.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.05. Astronics had a positive return on equity of 22.89% and a negative net margin of 0.45%.The business had revenue of $204.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $208.29 million. Research analysts forecast that Astronics Corporation will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Astronics

In other news, insider James Mulato sold 1,129 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.16, for a total value of $43,082.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 1,066 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,678.56. This represents a 51.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 9.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ATRO. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Astronics by 5.3% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 113,964 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,755,000 after purchasing an additional 5,733 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Astronics in the first quarter valued at about $5,521,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Astronics by 192.2% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,705 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Astronics by 88.5% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,446 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Astronics in the first quarter valued at about $1,043,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.68% of the company's stock.

Astronics Company Profile

Astronics Corporation, through its subsidiaries, designs and manufactures products for the aerospace, defense, and electronics industries in the United States, rest of North America, Asia, Europe, South America, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Test Systems. The Aerospace segment offers lighting and safety systems, electrical power generation systems, distribution and seat motions systems, aircraft structures, avionics products, system certification, and other products.

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