Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) Price Target Raised to $17.00

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) had its price target raised by Robert W. Baird from $15.00 to $17.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. Robert W. Baird currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

AVTR has been the subject of several other reports. Barclays increased their price objective on Avantor from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on Avantor from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Avantor in a report on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Avantor from $15.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Avantor from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.96.

Avantor Stock Down 0.2%

AVTR stock opened at $15.44 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $13.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.98. Avantor has a fifty-two week low of $10.82 and a fifty-two week high of $23.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.59, a PEG ratio of 5.03 and a beta of 0.98.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last posted its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Avantor had a return on equity of 11.39% and a net margin of 10.31%.Avantor’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Avantor will post 1.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Avantor

In other Avantor news, CAO Steven W. Eck sold 3,476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.39, for a total value of $39,591.64. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 55,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $627,224.52. This represents a 5.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avantor

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AVTR. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avantor during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Avantor by 288.4% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,263 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Avantor by 119.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,189 shares during the period. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Avantor during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Wealthquest Corp bought a new stake in Avantor during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. 95.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Avantor

Avantor, Inc engages in the provision of mission-critical products and services to customers in the biopharma, healthcare, education and government, advanced technologies, and applied materials industries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. The company offers materials and consumables, such as purity chemicals and reagents, lab products and supplies, formulated silicone materials, customized excipients, customized single-use assemblies, process chromatography resins and columns, analytical sample prep kits, education and microbiology products, clinical trial kits, peristaltic pumps, and fluid handling tips.