abrdn plc Reduces Stake in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR)

abrdn plc lowered its holdings in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) by 31.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 694,309 shares of the company’s stock after selling 321,725 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned about 0.10% of Avantor worth $17,962,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Avantor by 69.6% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 835 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new position in Avantor during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,043,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Avantor by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 28,012 shares of the company’s stock valued at $725,000 after purchasing an additional 1,091 shares during the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden grew its stake in shares of Avantor by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 146,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,800,000 after purchasing an additional 9,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Avantor in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $4,874,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.08% of the company’s stock.

Avantor Stock Down 0.4 %

AVTR opened at $22.37 on Friday. Avantor, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.06 and a 12 month high of $28.00. The stock has a market cap of $15.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $25.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on AVTR shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Avantor from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Avantor from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of Avantor in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays reduced their price target on Avantor from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Citigroup cut Avantor from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $23.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Avantor has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $27.57.

Insider Transactions at Avantor

In other news, CAO Steven W. Eck sold 3,525 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.06, for a total value of $88,336.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,544 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $740,372.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Avantor Profile

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.