Caprock Group LLC Invests $1.64 Million in Azenta, Inc. $AZTA

Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 53,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,640,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZTA. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Azenta by 44.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,242 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Azenta by 12.7% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Azenta by 29.1% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Azenta by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in Azenta by 249.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,017 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 726 shares during the last quarter. 99.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Azenta Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ AZTA opened at $28.62 on Friday. Azenta, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.91 and a 12-month high of $47.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.20 and a beta of 1.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $35.60 and a 200 day moving average of $32.67.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $148.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $146.89 million. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.43% and a negative net margin of 10.34%.The company’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.08 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.53 EPS for the current year.

Azenta declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 10th that authorizes the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 14.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Azenta from $35.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Azenta from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Azenta in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Azenta in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Azenta from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.33.

Azenta Profile

Azenta, Inc (NASDAQ: AZTA) is a life sciences technology company specializing in sample management, cryogenic storage and genomic services for research and clinical applications. Formerly the Life Sciences division of Brooks Automation, Azenta provides integrated solutions that enable customers to store, track and analyze biological samples with high levels of automation, data integrity and efficiency. Its offerings span automated storage systems, biorepository management software and end?to?end sample tracking workflows.

In addition to hardware and informatics platforms for sample storage, Azenta’s Genomics business delivers next?generation sequencing (NGS), DNA synthesis, and molecular biology services.