Atkore (NYSE:ATKR) Shares Down 3.5% - Here's What Happened

Atkore Inc. (NYSE:ATKR - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 3.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $68.31 and last traded at $68.16. 47,544 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 667,500 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ATKR. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Atkore from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (up from $70.00) on shares of Atkore in a research report on Monday. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Atkore from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Atkore from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $78.00 price objective on Atkore and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Atkore presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.57.

Atkore Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 3.03 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $64.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $71.66. The stock has a market cap of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.42 and a beta of 2.06.

Atkore (NYSE:ATKR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.52. Atkore had a net margin of 12.42% and a return on equity of 25.69%. The firm had revenue of $701.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $690.83 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.08 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Atkore Inc. will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atkore Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. This is an increase from Atkore's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Atkore's payout ratio is currently 25.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atkore news, insider Mark F. Lamps sold 1,000 shares of Atkore stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.16, for a total transaction of $69,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,270,384.48. This trade represents a 2.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.99% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Hawaiian Bank bought a new position in shares of Atkore during the first quarter valued at $572,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Atkore by 3.2% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 52,856 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,616 shares during the period. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Atkore during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atkore by 59.7% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 29,363 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,761,000 after acquiring an additional 10,972 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atkore by 15.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 116,830 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,009,000 after acquiring an additional 16,028 shares during the period.

About Atkore

Atkore Inc engages in the manufacture and sale of electrical, mechanical, safety, and infrastructure products and solutions in the United States and internationally. The company offers conduits, cables, and installation accessories. It also designs and manufactures protection and reliability solutions for critical infrastructure, such as metal framing, mechanical pipe, perimeter security, and cable management.