Truist Financial Upgrades Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) to Buy

Truist Financial upgraded shares of Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. Truist Financial currently has $49.00 price target on the aerospace company's stock.

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut Astronics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st.

Astronics Stock Up 16.1%

Shares of ATRO traded up $5.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $36.11. The stock had a trading volume of 1,627,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 379,932. Astronics has a 12 month low of $14.13 and a 12 month high of $36.47. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $24.29. The company has a current ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -300.89 and a beta of 1.55.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.19. Astronics had a positive return on equity of 18.45% and a negative net margin of 0.43%. The company had revenue of $205.94 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $192.53 million. Equities research analysts predict that Astronics will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Astronics

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Astronics by 88.5% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,446 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 679 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in shares of Astronics by 355.5% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 3,576 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 2,791 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Astronics by 192.2% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 1,705 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its position in shares of Astronics by 167.1% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 4,156 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 2,600 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Astronics during the fourth quarter valued at about $73,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.68% of the company's stock.

About Astronics

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.