ATS (NYSE:ATS) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Shares of ATS Corporation (NYSE:ATS) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $35.27, but opened at $32.48. ATS shares last traded at $29.6120, with a volume of 152,203 shares changing hands.

The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.06). ATS had a net margin of 0.77% and a return on equity of 9.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ATS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of ATS in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of ATS in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded ATS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 15th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded ATS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $35.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ATS. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of ATS by 187.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,022,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,269,000 after buying an additional 1,970,040 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of ATS by 166.5% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,297,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,544,000 after acquiring an additional 1,435,375 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of ATS during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,727,000. Alberta Investment Management Corp boosted its holdings in ATS by 217.5% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 1,340,265 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,918,000 after acquiring an additional 918,100 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in ATS by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 7,644,547 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,529,000 after acquiring an additional 623,369 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.84% of the company’s stock.

ATS Stock Down 17.3%

The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.73. The company has a market cap of $2.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 193.55 and a beta of 1.26.

About ATS

ATS Corporation (NYSE: ATS) is a Canada-based global provider of automation and energy solutions. Headquartered in Cambridge, Ontario, the company specializes in the design, engineering and manufacturing of custom automation and test systems, as well as fluid handling and control products. Since its founding in 1978, ATS has focused on delivering integrated hardware and software solutions that help original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) improve efficiency, quality and throughput across a range of industries.

Through its Automation segment, ATS develops bespoke assembly and testing platforms for sectors such as life sciences, consumer electronics, automotive and industrial equipment.