Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Reduces Holdings in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank reduced its stake in shares of Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR - Free Report) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 377,244 shares of the company's stock after selling 55,969 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.06% of Avantor worth $7,949,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avantor in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. Amundi raised its position in shares of Avantor by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,752,769 shares of the company's stock worth $38,789,000 after acquiring an additional 64,781 shares during the period. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avantor during the 4th quarter worth about $1,779,000. River Global Investors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Avantor during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,115,000. Finally, Andra AP fonden increased its stake in shares of Avantor by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 332,202 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,999,000 after purchasing an additional 110,664 shares in the last quarter. 95.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avantor

In related news, CAO Steven W. Eck sold 4,907 shares of Avantor stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.53, for a total value of $86,019.71. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 40,604 shares in the company, valued at $711,788.12. The trade was a 10.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP James Bramwell sold 3,758 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.53, for a total value of $65,877.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 87,379 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,531,753.87. The trade was a 4.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on AVTR shares. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Avantor from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Avantor from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Avantor from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $24.00 price target (down from $26.00) on shares of Avantor in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Avantor from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $25.50.

Avantor Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of AVTR traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $16.53. The stock had a trading volume of 5,267,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,238,945. The company has a market cap of $11.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.89, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.30. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $19.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.01. Avantor, Inc. has a 1-year low of $15.37 and a 1-year high of $28.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.01. Avantor had a return on equity of 12.17% and a net margin of 10.49%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.22 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current year.

About Avantor

Avantor, Inc engages in the provision of mission-critical products and services to customers in the biopharma, healthcare, education and government, advanced technologies, and applied materials industries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. The company offers materials and consumables, such as purity chemicals and reagents, lab products and supplies, formulated silicone materials, customized excipients, customized single-use assemblies, process chromatography resins and columns, analytical sample prep kits, education and microbiology products, clinical trial kits, peristaltic pumps, and fluid handling tips.