Atkore Inc. (NYSE:ATKR) Short Interest Update

Atkore Inc. (NYSE:ATKR) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,850,000 shares, a decrease of 21.3% from the January 31st total of 2,350,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 708,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days. Currently, 5.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Atkore Trading Down 1.2 %

Atkore stock traded down $0.68 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $58.21. The stock had a trading volume of 254,805 shares, compared to its average volume of 726,814. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $76.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.68. Atkore has a one year low of $55.91 and a one year high of $194.98. The stock has a market cap of $2.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Atkore (NYSE:ATKR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.45. The firm had revenue of $661.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $680.77 million. Atkore had a net margin of 12.42% and a return on equity of 25.69%. The company’s revenue was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.12 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Atkore will post 5.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atkore Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Atkore’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ATKR shares. Roth Capital upgraded Atkore to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of Atkore from $105.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $102.00 target price (up from $93.00) on shares of Atkore in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Roth Mkm initiated coverage on shares of Atkore in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Finally, B. Riley downgraded shares of Atkore from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Mark F. Lamps sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total value of $32,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,194,400. The trade was a 1.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.99% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atkore

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATKR. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Atkore during the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,207,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Atkore during the fourth quarter worth $581,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in Atkore by 143.1% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 5,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $496,000 after buying an additional 3,495 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new position in Atkore in the fourth quarter valued at $207,000. Finally, CSS LLC IL boosted its position in Atkore by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. CSS LLC IL now owns 4,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 526 shares during the last quarter.

About Atkore

Atkore Inc engages in the manufacture and sale of electrical, mechanical, safety, and infrastructure products and solutions in the United States and internationally. The company offers conduits, cables, and installation accessories. It also designs and manufactures protection and reliability solutions for critical infrastructure, such as metal framing, mechanical pipe, perimeter security, and cable management.