Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) Shares Bought by Prudential PLC

Prudential PLC raised its holdings in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) by 323.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,068 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,841 shares during the period. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Avantor were worth $1,181,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its stake in Avantor by 34.1% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 346,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,972,000 after acquiring an additional 88,205 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd grew its position in shares of Avantor by 38.7% in the fourth quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 1,766,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,228,000 after purchasing an additional 493,408 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Avantor in the fourth quarter valued at about $555,000. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in shares of Avantor by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 1,922,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,504,000 after purchasing an additional 33,692 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Avantor by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,027,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,792,000 after purchasing an additional 74,735 shares during the last quarter. 95.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Avantor

In other news, CAO Steven W. Eck sold 4,907 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.53, for a total value of $86,019.71. Following the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James Bramwell sold 3,758 shares of Avantor stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.53, for a total transaction of $65,877.74. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 87,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,531,753.87. This trade represents a 4.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Avantor Stock Performance

NYSE:AVTR opened at $15.25 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $17.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.87. Avantor, Inc. has a 1-year low of $14.67 and a 1-year high of $28.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.66, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.24.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.27 EPS 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. Analysts forecast that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVTR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays lowered their price objective on Avantor from $26.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Avantor in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Avantor from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Avantor from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $24.00 price target (down from $26.00) on shares of Avantor in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.50.

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.