First Trust Advisors LP Makes New Investment in Astronics Co. (NASDAQ:ATRO)

First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Astronics Co. (NASDAQ:ATRO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 11,226 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $179,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ATRO. Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in shares of Astronics by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,150,355 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $18,360,000 after purchasing an additional 181,619 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Astronics by 139.3% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 286,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $4,576,000 after acquiring an additional 166,900 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Astronics by 154.3% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 236,406 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,773,000 after acquiring an additional 143,452 shares during the last quarter. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Astronics during the fourth quarter worth about $1,783,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Astronics by 259.8% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 145,626 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,324,000 after purchasing an additional 105,157 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.68% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Astronics from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Astronics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th.

Astronics Stock Down 0.6%

ATRO stock traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $30.03. 59,351 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 462,737. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Astronics Co. has a 12-month low of $14.13 and a 12-month high of $30.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $24.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -158.02 and a beta of 1.44.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.19. Astronics had a positive return on equity of 6.94% and a negative net margin of 0.82%. The company had revenue of $205.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $192.53 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Astronics Co. will post 0.82 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert S. Keane sold 77,099 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.55, for a total value of $1,892,780.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $155,794.30. The trade was a 92.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.39% 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.