Astronics Co. (NASDAQ:ATRO) Short Interest Up 6.0% in March

Astronics Co. (NASDAQ:ATRO) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 297,600 shares, a growth of 6.0% from the February 29th total of 280,700 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 135,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Astronics Stock Up 2.2 %

NASDAQ:ATRO opened at $18.09 on Thursday. Astronics has a 52 week low of $12.91 and a 52 week high of $22.44. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $18.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $624.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.06 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Astronics (NASDAQ:ATRO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The aerospace company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $195.29 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.35 million. Astronics had a negative return on equity of 6.53% and a negative net margin of 3.83%. Research analysts anticipate that Astronics will post 0.71 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Astronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Astronics from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Astronics

In other Astronics news, EVP Michael C. Kuehn sold 7,074 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.72, for a total transaction of $125,351.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $228,145. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Michael C. Kuehn sold 2,209 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.16, for a total value of $44,533.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $287,239.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Michael C. Kuehn sold 7,074 shares of Astronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.72, for a total transaction of $125,351.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $228,145. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 10.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATRO. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Astronics by 54.2% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 13,979 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $181,000 after buying an additional 4,911 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in shares of Astronics by 2.5% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,122,674 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $27,446,000 after acquiring an additional 52,176 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Astronics by 10.5% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 727,669 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $9,409,000 after acquiring an additional 68,864 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Astronics in the first quarter valued at $148,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Astronics during the 1st quarter worth $307,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.68% of the company’s stock.

About Astronics

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.