Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) Stock Price Up 20.3% – Time to Buy?

Shares of Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA) were up 20.3% during trading on Friday. The stock traded as high as $37.57 and last traded at $41.4850. 393,766 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average session volume of 902,694 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZTA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $37.00 price target on shares of Azenta in a report on Monday, September 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Azenta from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.20.

Azenta Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $32.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.20. The stock has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -14.20 and a beta of 1.52.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.05. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.18% and a negative net margin of 20.63%.The company had revenue of $161.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $149.31 million.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Azenta

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AZTA. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Azenta in the second quarter valued at $39,000. Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new stake in shares of Azenta in the second quarter valued at $508,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Azenta during the second quarter worth $697,000. Kerrisdale Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Azenta by 1,419.5% in the second quarter. Kerrisdale Advisers LLC now owns 290,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,418,000 after buying an additional 271,552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moore Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Azenta in the second quarter valued at $1,569,000. 99.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Azenta Company Profile

Azenta, Inc (NASDAQ: AZTA) is a life sciences company that provides products and services for the management, storage, and analysis of biological and chemical samples. Its offerings support pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academic and government research institutions, clinical research organizations, and other laboratories.

The company’s products include automated sample storage systems, laboratory automation equipment, sample-management software, consumables, and cold-storage solutions designed to preserve and track biological materials.