Rhumbline Advisers Reduces Stake in Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA)

Rhumbline Advisers decreased its stake in shares of Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA - Free Report) by 28.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 111,653 shares of the company's stock after selling 44,720 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned approximately 0.24% of Azenta worth $5,583,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Azenta by 65.0% in the 4th quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,577,881 shares of the company's stock worth $78,894,000 after buying an additional 621,830 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP boosted its position in Azenta by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 739,977 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,844,000 after acquiring an additional 53,584 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in shares of Azenta in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,979,000. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Azenta in the 3rd quarter worth $1,726,000. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Azenta by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 434,597 shares of the company's stock worth $21,052,000 after purchasing an additional 34,849 shares during the last quarter. 99.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Azenta Stock Performance

Shares of AZTA traded down $2.52 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $41.10. The stock had a trading volume of 450,598 shares, compared to its average volume of 509,893. Azenta, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.82 and a fifty-two week high of $67.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.85 and a beta of 1.47. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $50.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.69.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.03. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.25% and a negative net margin of 24.91%. As a group, analysts predict that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on AZTA shares. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Azenta in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Azenta from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Azenta from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Azenta to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $58.75.

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.