Avantax (NASDAQ:AVTA) Downgraded by William Blair to “Market Perform”

William Blair cut shares of Avantax (NASDAQ:AVTA) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on AVTA. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on shares of Avantax from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 11th. Benchmark decreased their price target on shares of Avantax from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 11th. Finally, Barrington Research decreased their price target on shares of Avantax from $32.50 to $30.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Avantax presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $29.00.

Avantax Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AVTA opened at $25.54 on Monday. Avantax has a 12 month low of $17.94 and a 12 month high of $30.23. The stock has a market cap of $938.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.48, a PEG ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.28. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $23.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.37 and a quick ratio of 2.37.

Avantax (NASDAQ:AVTA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 9th. The company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.08). Avantax had a negative return on equity of 2.52% and a net margin of 49.57%. The firm had revenue of $186.93 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $187.91 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Avantax will post 0.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avantax

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Avantax during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,921,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avantax during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,120,000. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp purchased a new position in shares of Avantax during the 2nd quarter valued at $760,000. Boston Partners purchased a new position in shares of Avantax during the 2nd quarter valued at $10,961,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Avantax during the 2nd quarter valued at $7,666,000. 91.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Avantax

Avantax, Inc provides wealth management solutions to consumers, small business owners, tax professionals, financial professionals, and certified public accounting firms in the United States. The company offers an integrated platform of technical, practice, compliance, operations, sales, and product support tools that enable to offer tax-advantaged planning, investing, and wealth management services.