Air Transport Services Group (NASDAQ:ATSG) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Air Transport Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATSG) saw strong trading volume on Tuesday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $15.00 to $22.50. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. 668,530 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 13% from the previous session’s volume of 590,233 shares.The stock last traded at $21.97 and had previously closed at $22.00.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on ATSG. Loop Capital reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $22.50 price target (up from $22.00) on shares of Air Transport Services Group in a report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Air Transport Services Group from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Air Transport Services Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.60.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Transport Services Group

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Transport Services Group by 70.0% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 42,763 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 17,609 shares during the period. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Air Transport Services Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $243,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of Air Transport Services Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $227,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Air Transport Services Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,041,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Transport Services Group by 8.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 242,599 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,338,000 after purchasing an additional 18,342 shares during the period. 91.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Transport Services Group Price Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $16.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.85. The stock has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a PE ratio of 88.08 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Air Transport Services Group (NASDAQ:ATSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The transportation company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.03. Air Transport Services Group had a net margin of 0.90% and a return on equity of 4.24%. The firm had revenue of $488.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $513.67 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.57 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Air Transport Services Group, Inc. will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Air Transport Services Group Company Profile

Air Transport Services Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides aircraft leasing, and air cargo transportation and related services in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Cargo Aircraft Management Inc (CAM) and ACMI Services. The company offers aircraft, flight crews, aircraft hull and liability insurance, and aviation fuel services; and aircraft maintenance and modification services, including airframe modification and heavy maintenance, component repairs, engineering services, and aircraft line maintenance.