Air Transport Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATSG) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Air Transport Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATSG) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,210,000 shares, a drop of 14.0% from the November 30th total of 2,570,000 shares. Approximately 4.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,190,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Air Transport Services Group from $15.00 to $22.50 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Air Transport Services Group in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Loop Capital restated a “hold” rating and issued a $22.50 price target (up previously from $22.00) on shares of Air Transport Services Group in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.60.

Air Transport Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ATSG traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $21.92. 1,225,582 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 710,712. The company has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -547.86 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $20.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.08. Air Transport Services Group has a 52 week low of $11.62 and a 52 week high of $22.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Air Transport Services Group (NASDAQ:ATSG) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The transportation company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $471.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $507.46 million. Air Transport Services Group had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a positive return on equity of 3.12%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Air Transport Services Group will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Transport Services Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATSG. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Air Transport Services Group by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 290,423 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,702,000 after purchasing an additional 29,104 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Air Transport Services Group by 300.8% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 253,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,515,000 after buying an additional 190,202 shares during the period. Anchor Capital Management Company LLC boosted its stake in Air Transport Services Group by 26.4% during the second quarter. Anchor Capital Management Company LLC now owns 1,119,942 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $15,534,000 after buying an additional 233,789 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Air Transport Services Group by 74.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 213,730 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,460,000 after acquiring an additional 91,521 shares during the period. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP bought a new stake in Air Transport Services Group in the third quarter worth about $396,000. Institutional investors own 91.81% of the company’s stock.

About Air Transport Services Group

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.