Atlas Energy Solutions (NYSE:AESI) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. (NYSE:AESI)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $21.51, but opened at $23.85. Atlas Energy Solutions shares last traded at $23.37, with a volume of 767,923 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AESI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup cut Atlas Energy Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays cut Atlas Energy Solutions from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Atlas Energy Solutions in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Atlas Energy Solutions in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Pickering Energy Partners lowered Atlas Energy Solutions from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.44.

Atlas Energy Solutions Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.05. The company has a market capitalization of $2.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.90 and a beta of 0.69.

Atlas Energy Solutions (NYSE:AESI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.25). Atlas Energy Solutions had a net margin of 8.78% and a return on equity of 11.01%. The business had revenue of $304.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $307.93 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.51 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 93.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atlas Energy Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. This is a positive change from Atlas Energy Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.07%. Atlas Energy Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 121.52%.

Insider Transactions at Atlas Energy Solutions

In related news, major shareholder Brian Anthony Leveille sold 10,000 shares of Atlas Energy Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.50, for a total transaction of $205,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 542,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,111,205. This trade represents a 1.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Stacy Hock sold 8,571 shares of Atlas Energy Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.49, for a total value of $184,190.79. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 934,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,087,691.54. The trade was a 0.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 60,869 shares of company stock valued at $1,187,983 and have sold 75,713 shares valued at $1,581,831. Corporate insiders own 24.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atlas Energy Solutions

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AESI. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in Atlas Energy Solutions by 313.7% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,308 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank raised its position in Atlas Energy Solutions by 328.1% in the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,801 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Atlas Energy Solutions in the third quarter valued at $48,000. FMR LLC raised its position in Atlas Energy Solutions by 101.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 1,355 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in Atlas Energy Solutions by 47.1% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 34.59% of the company’s stock.

About Atlas Energy Solutions

Atlas Energy Solutions Inc engages in the production, processing, and sale of mesh and sand that are used as a proppant during the well completion process in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico. The company provides transportation and logistics, storage solutions, and contract labor services. It sells its products and services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies, and oilfield services companies.