First Trust Advisors LP Purchases 935,410 Shares of Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. (NYSE:AESI)

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. (NYSE:AESI - Free Report) by 31.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,908,810 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 935,410 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 3.55% of Atlas Energy Solutions worth $86,697,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Atlas Energy Solutions by 62.9% in the 4th quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in Atlas Energy Solutions by 191.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,941 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 1,276 shares during the last quarter. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Atlas Energy Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $55,000. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Atlas Energy Solutions by 101.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,696 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 1,355 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Atlas Energy Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $155,000. 34.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Atlas Energy Solutions

In other news, major shareholder Stacy Hock sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.50, for a total transaction of $225,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 897,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,196,090. This represents a 1.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Gregory M. Shepard purchased 32,155 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $19.04 per share, with a total value of $612,231.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 7,651,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $145,679,038.40. The trade was a 0.42 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 15.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James downgraded Atlas Energy Solutions from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $22.50 price objective on shares of Atlas Energy Solutions in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Benchmark dropped their target price on shares of Atlas Energy Solutions from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Atlas Energy Solutions from $22.00 to $15.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Atlas Energy Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.44.

Atlas Energy Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AESI traded up $0.38 during trading on Thursday, reaching $14.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,067,388 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,251,603. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.41 and a 52 week high of $26.86.

Atlas Energy Solutions (NYSE:AESI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.12). Atlas Energy Solutions had a return on equity of 11.01% and a net margin of 8.78%. The firm had revenue of $271.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $272.94 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atlas Energy Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is a boost from Atlas Energy Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.07%. Atlas Energy Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 178.57%.

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.