Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) Shares Up 6% – Should You Buy?

Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) shares were up 6% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $17.09 and last traded at $17.13. Approximately 7,212,494 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 20% from the average daily volume of 6,000,711 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.17.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVTR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Avantor from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Avantor from $26.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Avantor from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Avantor from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $25.00 price objective (down previously from $29.00) on shares of Avantor in a report on Friday, January 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.50.

Avantor Trading Up 8.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company has a market capitalization of $11.90 billion, a PE ratio of 16.78, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $20.07 and a 200 day moving average of $22.42.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.01. Avantor had a return on equity of 12.17% and a net margin of 10.49%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.22 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Steven W. Eck sold 4,907 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.53, for a total value of $86,019.71. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 40,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $711,788.12. This represents a 10.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP James Bramwell sold 3,758 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.53, for a total value of $65,877.74. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 87,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,531,753.87. The trade was a 4.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avantor

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avantor by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 28,012 shares of the company’s stock valued at $725,000 after purchasing an additional 1,091 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Avantor by 69.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 835 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of Avantor by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in Avantor by 45.3% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 86,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,231,000 after purchasing an additional 26,884 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service boosted its holdings in shares of Avantor by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,288,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,329,000 after buying an additional 69,818 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.08% of the company’s stock.

Avantor Company Profile

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.