Zacks Research Downgrades Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) to Hold

Key Points

• Zacks Research has downgraded Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating, joining other firms in adjusting their outlooks on the stock.
• Astronics reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.38, exceeding estimates, but revenue fell short of analyst expectations at $204.68 million.
• Institutional investors hold 56.68% of Astronics' shares, with several firms significantly increasing their stakes in the company in recent quarters.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on ATRO. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Astronics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Astronics in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Truist Financial raised shares of Astronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $49.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, July 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $49.00.

Astronics Price Performance

ATRO stock opened at $47.87 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $1.70 billion, a P/E ratio of -398.88 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 3.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company's 50-day moving average price is $38.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.39. Astronics has a 12 month low of $14.13 and a 12 month high of $48.94.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $204.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $208.29 million. Astronics had a negative net margin of 0.45% and a positive return on equity of 22.89%. On average, analysts anticipate that Astronics will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider James Mulato sold 1,129 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.16, for a total transaction of $43,082.64. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,066 shares in the company, valued at $40,678.56. The trade was a 51.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 10.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Earnest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Astronics during the 1st quarter valued at $12,774,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Astronics during the 2nd quarter valued at $15,046,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Astronics by 80.1% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 746,956 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $18,054,000 after purchasing an additional 332,133 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Astronics by 659.8% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 339,947 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $11,381,000 after purchasing an additional 295,208 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Astronics by 186.0% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 352,075 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $11,787,000 after purchasing an additional 228,958 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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