Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 257,400 Shares of ATS Corporation $ATS

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of ATS Corporation (NYSE:ATS) by 29.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 620,840 shares of the company’s stock after selling 257,400 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in ATS were worth $17,443,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of ATS by 187.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,022,693 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,269,000 after buying an additional 1,970,040 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of ATS in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,727,000. Alberta Investment Management Corp lifted its stake in ATS by 217.5% in the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 1,340,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,918,000 after acquiring an additional 918,100 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada grew 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 worth $210,529,000 after acquiring an additional 623,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its holdings in ATS by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 6,888,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $189,771,000 after acquiring an additional 507,491 shares in the last quarter. 75.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ATS Stock Performance

Shares of ATS opened at $26.88 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market cap of $2.64 billion, a PE ratio of 51.69 and a beta of 1.21. ATS Corporation has a 12 month low of $23.84 and a 12 month high of $35.82. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $28.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.08.

ATS (NYSE:ATS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.06). ATS had a return on equity of 9.40% and a net margin of 2.40%.The business had revenue of $535.09 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $529.43 million. Equities research analysts predict that ATS Corporation will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ATS shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of ATS from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of ATS from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen cut ATS from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Desjardins began coverage on ATS in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised ATS from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.50.

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.