ATS (NYSE:ATS) Sets New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Key Points

• ATS Corporation (NYSE:ATS) hit a new 52-week high intraday at $33.53, last trading around $33.26 on elevated volume of about 122,000 shares.
• Analyst coverage is mixed—two Buys, two Holds and one Sell—giving ATS an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $35.00.
• In the latest quarter ATS beat EPS at $0.34 versus $0.30 expected but missed revenue with $553.8M vs. $723M est.; the stock trades at a high P/E of 221.77 and has a market cap of roughly $3.26 billion.

ATS Corporation (NYSE:ATS - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $33.53 and last traded at $33.2640, with a volume of 121975 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $32.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ATS shares. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of ATS in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Zacks Research lowered ATS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of ATS in a research report on Monday. TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of ATS in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered ATS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, February 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ATS presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $35.00.

ATS Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 221.77 and a beta of 1.16.

ATS (NYSE:ATS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $553.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $722.96 million. ATS had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 0.77%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that ATS Corporation will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in shares of ATS by 2.6% during the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 16,423 shares of the company's stock valued at $461,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ATS during the fourth quarter valued at $793,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of ATS by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,272,222 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,037,000 after purchasing an additional 75,490 shares during the period. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of ATS during the fourth quarter valued at $302,000. Finally, Guardian Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of ATS during the fourth quarter valued at $1,298,000. 75.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ATS

ATS Corporation NYSE: ATS is a Canada-based global provider of automation and energy solutions. Headquartered in Cambridge, Ontario, the company specializes in the design, engineering and manufacturing of custom automation and test systems, as well as fluid handling and control products. Since its founding in 1978, ATS has focused on delivering integrated hardware and software solutions that help original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) improve efficiency, quality and throughput across a range of industries.

Through its Automation segment, ATS develops bespoke assembly and testing platforms for sectors such as life sciences, consumer electronics, automotive and industrial equipment.

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