Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) Hits New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) shares hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $7.38 and last traded at $7.6150, with a volume of 1538297 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.59.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AVTR. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Avantor in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $10.00 price objective on Avantor in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $8.50 target price on shares of Avantor in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Bank of America lowered Avantor from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Avantor from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.80.

Avantor Trading Down 0.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $9.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.18.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.01. Avantor had a negative net margin of 8.09% and a positive return on equity of 10.45%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Avantor has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.770-0.830 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Avantor

In other Avantor news, Director Sanjeev K. Mehra acquired 125,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $8.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 475,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,804,750. The trade was a 35.71% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gregory T. Lucier bought 50,000 shares of Avantor stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $9.16 per share, with a total value of $458,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $458,000. This trade represents a ? increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have acquired a total of 275,000 shares of company stock worth $2,399,250 over the last three months. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avantor

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Avantor by 119.1% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,189 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in Avantor by 46.2% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,769 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 875 shares during the period. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Avantor in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Avantor in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Avantor by 60.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,064 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.08% of the company’s stock.

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.