Astronics Co. (NASDAQ:ATRO) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Astronics Co. (NASDAQ:ATRO) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 355,700 shares, an increase of 14.3% from the August 31st total of 311,300 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 170,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.1 days.

Astronics Trading Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ:ATRO traded down $0.10 on Monday, reaching $19.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,392. The firm has a market cap of $695.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -26.03 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 2.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Astronics has a 12-month low of $14.11 and a 12-month high of $23.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $20.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.43.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The aerospace company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $198.11 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $191.19 million. Astronics had a negative net margin of 1.57% and a negative return on equity of 0.31%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.37) EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Astronics will post 0.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Astronics

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bares Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Astronics by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Bares Capital Management Inc. now owns 814,692 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $14,192,000 after purchasing an additional 92,574 shares in the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Astronics in the 2nd quarter valued at $857,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Astronics by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 888,942 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $17,806,000 after acquiring an additional 40,438 shares in the last quarter. Senator Investment Group LP boosted its holdings in Astronics by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Senator Investment Group LP now owns 545,754 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $10,391,000 after acquiring an additional 36,980 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its position in Astronics by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 391,426 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,840,000 after acquiring an additional 30,550 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Astronics from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd.

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.