Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $9.49 and last traded at $9.3280, with a volume of 353733 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $11.16.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on AVTR. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Avantor from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $12.00 price target (down from $14.00) on shares of Avantor in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Bank of America lowered shares of Avantor from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group set a $12.00 target price on shares of Avantor in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Avantor to an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Avantor has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.60.

Avantor Trading Down 16.9%

The firm has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -72.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $11.49 and its 200-day moving average is $12.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Avantor had a negative net margin of 1.25% and a positive return on equity of 10.91%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avantor

In related news, Director Sanjeev K. Mehra bought 350,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $11.09 per share, for a total transaction of $3,881,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 350,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,881,500. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avantor

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Avantor by 119.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,189 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in Avantor by 46.2% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,769 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Avantor in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Avantor in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Avantor by 60.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,064 shares in the last quarter. 95.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Avantor

Avantor, Inc (NYSE:AVTR) is a global provider of mission-critical products and services to customers in the biopharma, healthcare, education & government, and advanced technologies & applied materials industries. The company delivers essential solutions that support research, development, production and safety applications. Its product portfolio spans from high-purity chemicals and reagents to biologics and cell culture media, as well as lab equipment, consumables and custom manufacturing services.

Avantor’s offerings are organized across two primary segments.