Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) Trading Up 4.3% – Here’s Why

Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA)’s share price rose 4.3% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $49.77 and last traded at $48.32. Approximately 87,446 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 557,064 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.31.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Azenta from $69.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Stephens upgraded shares of Azenta from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $50.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Azenta from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Azenta currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.60.

Azenta Trading Down 0.3 %

The company has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.67 and a beta of 1.49. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $44.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.45.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.08. Azenta had a negative net margin of 25.01% and a positive return on equity of 1.03%. The firm had revenue of $170.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.66 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Azenta news, CFO Herman Cueto sold 1,595 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.68, for a total transaction of $69,669.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,074,702.72. This represents a 6.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director William L. Cornog purchased 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $495,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 14,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $584,298. This represents a 554.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 3,018 shares of company stock valued at $126,689 in the last three months. 1.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Azenta

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Azenta by 20.0% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in Azenta by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 14,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC raised its position in Azenta by 3.5% during the third quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 10,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $494,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Azenta by 6.6% during the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Azenta by 3.2% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 12,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $629,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. 99.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Azenta Company Profile

Azenta, Inc provides biological and chemical compound sample exploration and management solutions for the life sciences market in North America, Africa, China, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates in two reportable segments, Life Sciences Products and Life Sciences Services.