ATI (NYSE:ATI) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

ATI (NYSE:ATI) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Monday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp cut shares of ATI from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on ATI from $81.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of ATI in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on ATI from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on ATI from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.71.

ATI Trading Down 0.8 %

NYSE ATI traded down $0.47 on Monday, reaching $59.70. The company had a trading volume of 1,346,098 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,446,324. ATI has a 52 week low of $38.04 and a 52 week high of $68.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $60.82 and its 200-day moving average is $60.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market cap of $8.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.96, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.08.

ATI (NYSE:ATI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by ($0.06). ATI had a net margin of 8.85% and a return on equity of 21.39%. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.12 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that ATI will post 2.27 earnings per share for the current year.

ATI announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, September 3rd that allows the company to buyback $700.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the basic materials company to repurchase up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at ATI

In related news, Chairman Robert S. Wetherbee sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.23, for a total value of $1,555,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 486,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,271,347.89. This trade represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of ATI

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ATI by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 445,746 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,993,000 after purchasing an additional 61,999 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in ATI by 0.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,952,934 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $130,709,000 after buying an additional 5,165 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC raised its stake in ATI by 16.7% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 6,311 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 904 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of ATI by 8.3% in the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 8,300 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $555,000 after buying an additional 633 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in shares of ATI in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,800,000.

ATI Company Profile

ATI Inc produces and sells specialty materials and complex components worldwide. It operates in two segments: High Performance Materials & Components (HPMC) and Advanced Alloys & Solutions (AA&S). The HPMC segment produces various materials, including titanium and titanium-based alloys, nickel- and cobalt-based alloys and superalloys, metallic powder alloys, advanced powder alloys and other specialty materials, in long product forms, such as ingot, billet, bar, rod, wire, shapes and rectangles, and seamless tubes, as well as precision forgings, components, and machined parts.