Avantor, Inc. $AVTR Shares Sold by Engine Capital Management LP

Engine Capital Management LP trimmed its holdings in shares of Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) by 39.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,927,812 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,792,618 shares during the period. Avantor accounts for about 18.9% of Engine Capital Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Engine Capital Management LP owned approximately 1.75% of Avantor worth $136,693,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AVTR. Eversept Partners LP raised its position in shares of Avantor by 243.6% during the 4th quarter. Eversept Partners LP now owns 3,176,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,404,000 after acquiring an additional 2,252,202 shares during the last quarter. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Avantor during the fourth quarter worth $5,787,000. Circumference Group LLC bought a new stake in Avantor in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,495,000. Clearline Capital LP acquired a new position in Avantor in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,761,000. Finally, Boothbay Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in Avantor in the fourth quarter valued at about $306,000. 95.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avantor Price Performance

Shares of AVTR opened at $9.46 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.57. Avantor, Inc. has a 52-week low of $7.26 and a 52-week high of $15.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.46 billion, a PE ratio of -11.67, a P/E/G ratio of 5.55 and a beta of 0.97.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. Avantor had a negative net margin of 8.42% and a positive return on equity of 9.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Avantor, Inc. will post 0.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avantor

In related news, Director Gregory T. Lucier bought 10,000 shares of Avantor stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.32 per share, with a total value of $83,200.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 60,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $499,200. This trade represents a 20.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Simon Dingemans purchased 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $8.14 per share, for a total transaction of $203,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 25,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,500. This represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVTR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Avantor from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Avantor in a report on Thursday, May 14th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $9.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Avantor from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Avantor from $8.50 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Avantor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avantor presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $10.57.

About Avantor

Avantor, Inc (NYSE:AVTR) is a global provider of mission-critical products and services to customers in the biopharma, healthcare, education & government, and advanced technologies & applied materials industries. The company delivers essential solutions that support research, development, production and safety applications. Its product portfolio spans from high-purity chemicals and reagents to biologics and cell culture media, as well as lab equipment, consumables and custom manufacturing services.

Avantor’s offerings are organized across two primary segments.