Astronics Corporation (ATRO) Stock Price & How to Invest
Last updated October 2026
Short answer
Astronics (ATRO) is a small-cap aerospace supplier that makes the electrical power, lighting and avionics hardware inside commercial, business and military aircraft, plus automated test systems for defense customers. It is a leveraged play on aircraft build rates and cabin retrofits. The stock closed at $61.86 on October 16, 2026, up about 37% for the year and 62% over twelve months but about a third below its 52-week high of $94.46, and at roughly 34 times trailing earnings it still prices in more of the margin recovery that started showing up in 2025.
ATRO stock price
As of 2026-11-04, Astronics Corporation (ATRO) last closed at $57.48, up 52.1% over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks it has traded between $37.49 and $93.45.
Prices are daily closing prices from Yahoo Finance and may be delayed. For the live quote, check your broker or Astronics Corporation's investor relations page. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
What does Astronics Corporation (ATRO) do?
Astronics Corporation has been in East Aurora, New York since 1968, and it sells components rather than aircraft. The Aerospace segment, about 93 percent of revenue, supplies electrical power generation and distribution systems, in-seat and cabin power (the EmPower line is on more than a million seats across 260-plus airlines and holds a dominant share of narrowbody in-seat power), lighting and safety systems, seat motion, avionics and aircraft structures. The smaller Test Systems segment builds automated test equipment for defense and mass transit, and its anchor program is the U.S. Army TS-4549/T radio test set, an IDIQ contract initially funded at roughly $215 million that entered full-rate production with a ~$44.7 million order in June 2026. Customers are the airframers, the seat and interior integrators, the in-flight entertainment vendors and government programs, so revenue tracks other people's production schedules more than end-consumer demand.
The investment picture is a margin story catching up to a volume story. Astronics lost money in 2023 and 2024 even as revenue grew, because pricing on legacy programs, supply chain cost inflation and a UK patent judgment ate the operating line. That flipped in 2025: revenue reached ~$862 million, net income turned positive at ~$29 million, and gross margin crossed 30 percent for the first time in years. First quarter 2026 pushed further, with sales up 12 percent, gross margin at 32.6 percent and operating income more than doubling. Management raised 2026 guidance to $970 million to $1.0 billion, all organic, against a record ~$734 million backlog. The second quarter of 2026 kept the run going: sales of about $260 million, up 27% from a year earlier and above the $245 million to $250 million management had targeted, with net income of about $35 million and EPS of $0.70 against a $0.61 consensus. Trailing twelve-month revenue is now about $942 million and net income about $79 million, which pulled the trailing P/E down to roughly 34 from about 75 earlier in the year even as the share price rose. The stock peaked near $94 and closed at $61.86 on October 16, 2026, still up about 37% year to date, so some of the earlier optimism has already come out. Third-quarter results are expected around November 10, 2026, with consensus at $0.71 of EPS on about $267 million of sales.
What's driving Astronics Corporation (ATRO)?
1. Aircraft build rates and the retrofit cycle.
Astronics ships content per aircraft and per seat, so Boeing and Airbus narrowbody output is the single biggest swing factor in the model. Beyond new builds, airlines refreshing cabins with USB-C power, updated lighting and newer seat electronics create a retrofit stream that does not depend on airframer delivery slots. Both channels were suppressed for years and are still working through catch-up demand.
2. Margin expansion, not just volume.
Gross margin moved from 25.3 percent in 2023 to 29.9 percent in 2025 to 32.6 percent in the first quarter of 2026, which is where most of the earnings growth came from. Repriced legacy contracts, better factory absorption and a mix shift toward higher-value power and avionics content are the stated drivers. Because the cost base is fairly fixed, each incremental dollar of revenue drops through at a high rate, which cuts both ways. Gross margin was about 32% on a trailing basis through the second quarter of 2026, with operating margin near 15%, so the step-up has held for several quarters.
3. Test Systems and the Army radio program.
Test Systems is only around 7 percent of sales but carries strategic weight because it is defense-funded and multi-year. The TS-4549/T program moved into full-rate production in mid-2026 with roughly $145 million of the original funding still to be drawn. Defense test work is lumpy quarter to quarter, so it adds backlog visibility more than it adds smooth revenue.
4. Record backlog and book-to-bill.
Bookings of ~$290 million in the first quarter of 2026 produced a 1.26 book-to-bill and a record ~$734 million backlog, up from ~$674 million at the end of 2025. That covers most of a year's revenue and is the main reason management could raise full-year guidance without leaning on acquisitions. Backlog conversion still depends on supply chain and labor availability, which have been the constraint more than demand. Analysts now model 2026 revenue near $1.03 billion, at or slightly above the top of the earlier guidance range, and about $1.13 billion for 2027.
What are the risks to Astronics Corporation (ATRO)?
The valuation is the first risk: at roughly 34 times trailing earnings, 20 times forward and about 2.8 times TTM revenue, the stock is priced for the margin trajectory to continue, and a single quarter of build-rate softness or program timing slippage tends to hit small-cap suppliers hard. The share price fell about 35% from its 52-week high to $61.86 by October 16, 2026 with no reported miss, which shows how sharply it moves on sentiment. Customer concentration is real, since a handful of airframers, seat integrators and in-flight entertainment vendors drive most of Aerospace revenue, and their production cuts flow straight through. Total debt of roughly $353 million against about $9 million of cash, in a business that was loss-making as recently as 2024, leaves less cushion than the current earnings suggest, and free cash flow (about $17 million trailing) is thin. Test Systems revenue is government-funded and lumpy, so quarters can swing on order timing rather than underlying health. The company also carries a dual-class structure where Class B shares hold ten votes each, concentrating control, and it has a history of stock distributions instead of cash dividends, so total return depends entirely on the share price.
What is the Astronics Corporation (ATRO) forecast?
4 analysts publish price targets on ATRO, averaging $98.00 against a $60.16 price as of November 2026, or +62.9%. The published targets run from $90.00 to $107.00, a narrow spread, and the ratings split 4 buy, 1 hold, 0 sell. Over the last six months there has been 1 raise and 1 cut among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.
Read the full ATRO forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.
Is ATRO a buy or a sell?
We give no verdict on Astronics Corporation. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.
The case for buying. Aircraft build rates and the retrofit cycle. Astronics ships content per aircraft and per seat, so Boeing and Airbus narrowbody output is the single biggest swing factor in the model. The most optimistic published target, $107.00, assumes this works close to its best case.
The case against. The valuation is the first risk: at roughly 34 times trailing earnings, 20 times forward and about 2.8 times TTM revenue, the stock is priced for the margin trajectory to continue, and a single quarter of build-rate softness or program timing slippage tends to hit small-cap suppliers hard. The most pessimistic target, $90.00, is roughly what ATRO is worth if this bites instead.
Read the full bull and bear case on ATRO, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
Has Astronics Corporation (ATRO) split its stock?
Yes. Astronics Corporation (ATRO) has had 3 share splits in the last 10 years:
- 115:100 on October 6, 2016, so every share held became 1.15 shares.
- 1182:1000 on October 11, 2018, so every share held became 1.182 shares.
- 1253:1000 on June 15, 2026, so every share held became 1.253 shares.
A split changes the share count and the price per share and leaves the value of a holding unchanged. Someone holding $1,000 of ATRO the day before the 1253:1000 split held $1,000 the day after, in more shares at a proportionally lower price. Historical prices from before the date are normally shown split-adjusted, which is why a long-run chart shows no cliff.
Splits matter mainly because they make older price figures confusing to compare by hand, and because a board choosing to split is usually signalling that the price has run up far enough to feel awkward for smaller buyers. Neither is a reason to buy or sell.
How is Astronics Corporation (ATRO) valued? (approximate, October 2026)
A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Astronics Corporation's investor relations page or your broker.
- Revenue (TTM): ~$942M
- Q2 2026 sales: ~$260M, up ~27% year over year
- Margins (TTM): Gross ~32%, operating ~15%, net ~8%
- Net income (TTM): ~$79M, EPS ~$1.83
- P/E: ~34x trailing, ~20x forward
- Market cap: ~$2.7B
- Debt / cash: ~$353M / ~$9M
- Dividend: None (stock distributions instead)
The re-rating has partly reversed: earnings growth cut the trailing multiple from about 75 to about 34, and the share price is well off its high, so the forward multiple of about 20 now sits closer to aerospace component peers. Analysts expect 2026 EPS of about $2.70 and 2027 of about $3.04 on revenue of roughly $1.03 billion and $1.13 billion. The third-quarter report, expected around November 10, 2026, is the next check on whether margins hold.
Who competes with Astronics Corporation (ATRO)?
Large diversified aerospace systems suppliers
Safran (including the former Zodiac cabin interiors business), Collins Aerospace under RTX, Honeywell and Thales all sell power, lighting, avionics and cabin systems into the same airframers. They bring far bigger balance sheets and broader OEM relationships, and they can bundle content across a whole aircraft in ways Astronics cannot.
Cabin power and in-flight entertainment hardware
Panasonic Avionics, Burrana and Anuvu compete directly for in-seat power, cabin connectivity and entertainment hardware. This is where Astronics has its strongest position, with EmPower holding a large share of narrowbody in-seat power, but it is also where airline retrofit budgets and IFE vendor selections can shift content away quickly.
Small and mid-cap aerospace component peers
Ducommun, Moog, Woodward, Curtiss-Wright, Loar Holdings, HEICO and TransDigm are the comparison set investors actually use when pricing ATRO. Most trade on aftermarket content and margin quality, and the premium multiples in that group are part of why Astronics re-rated once its own margins turned.
What stocks are similar to Astronics Corporation (ATRO)?
Other names that sit close to ATRO: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.
How to invest in Astronics Corporation (ATRO)
There are three common ways to get ATRO exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it, which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so ATRO sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.
Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where ATRO fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.
New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.
The bottom line on Astronics Corporation (ATRO)
Astronics is a genuine turnaround with record backlog and finally-real margins: second-quarter 2026 sales rose 27% and EPS beat by nine cents. The valuation has come down from its peak as earnings caught up, but at about 34 times trailing and 20 times forward earnings it still leaves little room for a build-rate stumble.
More on Astronics Corporation (ATRO)
Whether ATRO is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is ATRO a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the ATRO stock forecast.
For income investors, whether ATRO pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does ATRO pay a dividend? And to weigh ATRO against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: ATRO vs RTX and ATRO vs HON.
Wondering how ATRO fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in Astronics Corporation with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how ATRO fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
What does Astronics actually make?
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Hardware that goes inside aircraft rather than the aircraft itself. The Aerospace segment supplies electrical power generation and distribution, in-seat and cabin power outlets, exterior and interior lighting, safety systems, seat motion, avionics and some structural assemblies. The Test Systems segment builds automated test equipment, mainly radio and weapons test sets for defense customers plus some mass transit work. Roughly 93 percent of revenue comes from Aerospace.
Why did the stock re-rate so sharply?
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Astronics lost money in both 2023 and 2024 despite growing revenue, so the market treated it as a low-quality supplier. Then margins inflected: gross margin went from 25.3 percent in 2023 to 29.9 percent in 2025 to 32.6 percent in the first quarter of 2026, operating income more than doubled year over year, and backlog hit a record. The share price roughly tripled as investors repriced it from turnaround to growth compounder. The run has since cooled: after peaking near $94, the stock closed at $61.86 on October 16, 2026, still about 37% higher for the year.
Is Astronics profitable now?
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Yes, though only recently. Full-year 2025 net income was about $29 million on $862 million of revenue, following net losses of $16 million in 2024 and $26 million in 2023. Trailing twelve month net income through the second quarter of 2026 is about $79 million, or roughly $1.83 per share, with operating margin near 15 percent. The second quarter alone produced about $35 million of net income. The profit history is short enough that consistency is still unproven.
What is the backlog and why does it matter?
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Backlog reached about $734 million at the end of the first quarter of 2026, up from roughly $674 million at year-end 2025, on record quarterly bookings near $290 million and a 1.26 book-to-bill ratio. That covers most of a year of revenue at current run rates, which is why management could raise 2026 guidance to $970 million to $1.0 billion without acquisitions. Converting it still depends on supply chain and labor. Analysts now expect 2026 revenue of about $1.03 billion.
What happened with the Lufthansa Technik patent case?
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Lufthansa Technik sued Astronics in the UK over an in-seat power patent, and a February 2025 ruling required Astronics to pay roughly $11.9 million in damages. In July 2026 the UK Court of Appeal dismissed Lufthansa Technik's appeal in its entirety and granted one of Astronics' appeals, which requires a partial refund of damages already paid plus potential attorney fee recovery. The amount had not been determined as of that announcement.
Does Astronics pay a dividend?
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No cash dividend. The company has a long-standing practice of periodic stock distributions instead, including a 20 percent Class B distribution announced in June 2026. Those distributions increase share count without delivering cash, so total return comes entirely from price appreciation. Investors screening for income will not find it here, and the stock distributions also make historical per-share and price comparisons need adjustment.
How much debt does Astronics carry?
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Total debt was about $353 million at the end of the second quarter of 2026, against roughly $9 million of cash. Trailing EBITDA of about $149 million puts leverage near 2.3 times, manageable at current earnings, but it was a much heavier burden during the loss-making years. Trailing operating cash flow of about $103 million and free cash flow of only about $17 million show that capital spending and working capital still absorb most of the cash the business generates.
How does ATRO tend to behave in a portfolio?
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Like a high-beta aerospace cyclical rather than a defensive industrial. Revenue tracks Boeing and Airbus build rates and airline cabin retrofit budgets, so it amplifies aerospace cycle moves in both directions, with a beta near 1.2 and a 52-week range that spans a multiple of the low. The defense Test Systems piece adds a partial offset, but it is too small to smooth the overall profile. Position sizing usually matters more here than entry timing.
How did Astronics do in its latest quarter?
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In the second quarter of 2026 (ended July 4) Astronics reported sales of about $260 million, up 27% year over year and above its own $245 million to $250 million target, with net income of about $35 million. EPS of $0.70 beat the $0.61 consensus, the fourth straight quarter ahead of estimates. Third-quarter results are expected around November 10, 2026, with consensus at $0.71 per share on about $267 million of revenue.
How has ATRO stock performed in 2026?
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As of the October 16, 2026 close of $61.86, ATRO was up about 37% year to date and about 62% over one year. It has pulled back from a 52-week high of about $94.46, falling about 10% over the last three months and about 6% over the last month, so a large part of the year's gain came early and has since been given back.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Financial figures on this page are approximations; always verify current numbers with Astronics Corporation's investor relations page or your broker before making investment decisions.