DnB Asset Management AS Has $2.79 Million Stake in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR)

DnB Asset Management AS grew its holdings in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 132,202 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,268 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Avantor were worth $2,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Avantor by 122.6% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 30,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $790,000 after buying an additional 16,818 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can bought a new stake in shares of Avantor during the third quarter worth $2,575,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avantor by 557.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,675,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,950,000 after acquiring an additional 3,963,912 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Avantor by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 259,985 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,726,000 after acquiring an additional 27,626 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in Avantor by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 41,297 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,068,000 after purchasing an additional 5,375 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.08% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avantor

In related news, CAO Steven W. Eck sold 4,907 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 87,379 shares in the company, 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. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Avantor Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:AVTR opened at $16.24 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.28. The company has a market capitalization of $11.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.07. Avantor, Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.37 and a 52-week high of $28.00.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.27 EPS 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 in the prior year, the company posted $0.22 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVTR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Avantor in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Avantor from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Avantor from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Avantor from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Avantor from $26.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Avantor has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.50.

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.